A Sonic Boom Werewolf Story
by TheSecretPerson
Summary: Just three days before Halloween on Seaside Island, Dr. Eggman uncovers an ancient Ruin harboring a horrifying past. As Team Sonic assesses the Ruin, Tails unwittingly initiates an old ritual, the consequences of which reveal themselves at the rise of the Full Moon. As the days pass closer to Halloween, Team Sonic is in thrown into a nightly struggle. Art Illustrated By Robobuddies
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1, The Monster's Tomb**

 **The Secret Person**

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 **Disclaimer:**

The featured Characters and Settings of the Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Boom brand are the Intellectual Property of Sega Games Co., Ltd. This story was not written with the consent of Sega, and does not represent the quality or intent of their intellectual property. This story was not written with the intention of earning any form of revenue or compensation, and is simply intended for free recreational viewing. Please support the official Sega properties.

 **Cover Art Illustrated By Robobuddies who is on Tumblr and Youtube! Support their work at:**

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Almost everyone in Hedgehog Village on Seaside Island was preparing for the spooky holiday of Halloween. Team Sonic currently prepared in Amy's House, a colorful hut stilted above a small pond.

Sonic, the blue Hedgehog with green eyes and quills protruding from his head and back, laid lazily on a purple couch. He wore a brown scarf, white gloves, and running shoes. As Sonic rested, his green eyes restlessly scanned a local catalog of Halloween costumes. With a quiet groan, Sonic dropped the catalog on the floor as he kicked his feet restlessly.

Nearby in the room was Amy the green eyed pink Hedgehog, sitting cross legged on the floor as she carved a pumpkin. Amy's quills were curved and well styled much like hair, and she wore a gold-buttoned red shirt. As Amy carefully gouged out a piece of pumpkin flesh, she tossed the orange waste into a bin.

Rather than properly toss a chunk of pumpkin, Knuckles the tall red echidna with purple eyes, opted to try eating it. With one chomp, Knuckles' face immediately scrunched up. His eyes met with Amy's as she gave him a judgmental glare, before handing the bin to him.

On the other side of the room, Sticks, the orange and brown badger with blue eyes, worked on a more complicated project. Her hair was held in large twin locks. Sticks wore a brown cloth top and skirt, as well as furred boots. Sticks was putting finishing garments on a ghostly scarecrow draped in a white cloth with a jack-o-lantern head, of which was meant to ward off most of the supposed evil Halloween spirits she was worried about.

Finished cutting out one last chunk of pumpkin flesh, Amy looked over her finished work. With a satisfied smirk, Amy spun around her jack-o-lantern, revealing a well proportioned face with a mildly threatening glare.

"I'm glad to have this holiday around to promote artistic creation." Said Amy, "How's your carving going Knuckles?"

"Well I've been told I'm an artistic professional, so probably good!" Replied Knuckles.

Knuckles raised his work for the others to see, revealing a pumpkin with a wobbly carved eye, a bashed in hole for a mouth, and a carving knife as a nose. Amy chuckled lightly at this sight, while Sticks scoffed.

"There's no way either of those meek squash puppets will ward off all the evil spirits!" Sticks said with a huff, "Put your backs into it if you want to survive!"

Sonic and Amy sighed almost simultaneously, while Knuckles shot up to his feet and said, "Hey, I believe in my pumpkin! While he may look kind on the outside, he's secretly stern and brooding on the inside!"

"Even so," interjected Sonic, "How are pumpkins and your sheet covered scarecrow supposed to ward off supposedly powerful spirits?"

"Because its managed to keep multiple generations, myself included, alive! That's why!"

"Oh, so you're putting your trust in what the majority of society says works?" Asked Sonic.

Sticks raised her finger as if about to object, but then looked down in thought. "Oh no, you're onto something Sonic! What if everyone's just been manipulated into thinking this works by the evil spirits, and jack-o-lanterns actually invite them into our homes?!" Sticks turned and scowled at her scarecrow jack-o-lantern, "You can't fool me!"

Amy sighed and glared at Sonic.

"What? I didn't put that into her head."

"You might as well have!" Said Amy, "Besides, why aren't you getting ready for any of the festivities?"

"Why bother? I already know how Halloween will go down." Said Sonic, "There's going to be a boring party in town. Then Eggman will attack, probably with some plan about using fear against the village. And after we beat him, we're all going to be tired and just wind up going home."

Before Amy could chastise Sonic, the front door of her hut flew open. Sonic and the others turned to see Miles Tails Prower, a yellow, blue eyed, two tailed fox. Tails wore white gloves similar to Sonic's, A brown work belt strapped around his waist and shoulder, and a multipurpose pair of goggles strapped on top his head. He ran inside with an urgent look in his eyes.

"Guys! I just found out Eggman is up to no good at the beach!" Said Tails.

"Oh no! I use that beach for swimming!" Lamented Knuckles.

"No, not that beach, the other one!"

"Oh no! Eggman is up to no good and making me run a longer distance than I feel like running today!"

Sonic jumped to his feet and asked, "What's he doing over there? There's not much to attack."

"I'm not sure about the details, but he's excavating for something big and making a mess!" Answered Tails.

Amy huffed as she picked up her hammer, "That's gonna totally mess up the environment and just ruin the aesthetic of the whole area!"

"That's no good, and there's no time to waste, so let's go!" Said Sonic.

Sonic beckoned the rest of the group and ran out he door first, followed by Tails, Sticks, and Amy. Knuckles groaned, and begrudgingly started to jog through the door after the others.

* * *

Elsewhere on Seaside Island, Dr. Eggman personally overlooked the scene of excavation from his flying vehicle, the Eggmobile. Dr. Eggman was a rather tall man with a bald head and an iconic brow mustache. He wore a militaristic red jacket with yellow cuffs and buttons, as well as white gloves and black boots. The Eggmobile was a spherical metal pod with an open air top.

Down on the beach, Eggman's creations and minions, a division of Crabbots, partook in the manual labor. This involved digging, rock breaking, dirt moving, and other tasks they were not designed for. A large hole had already been excavated in the beach, leaving mounds of sand and dirt on the perimeter. Half protruding from the bottom of the hole was an old stone structure. The visible structure was a dirty, grey stoned, castle-like bastion, with a large half buried wooden door.

Things appeared to be moving slowly at this point, as some Bots struggled with the weight as they moved rocks and dirt. Many Bots had their efficiency lowered by overheating from the weather and overwork. Most of the initial digging was done by Mega, a towering cyclops robot that moved on treads. Mega was modified with a scooping bucket on it's right arm, and a large drill on it's left. Currently, Mega timidly scraped dirt around the sides far enough from the structure itself.

Dr Eggman leaned on the front of his egg mobile, anxiously tapping his fingers next to the controls. A small hand-fan, held still by Orbot, blew lukewarm yet refreshing air over Eggman's head. Orbot, a short, red, sphere headed robot, hovered in the Eggmobile with Eggman.

"Ugh, the humidity today." Started Eggman, "This is an awful lot of work! That tipoff better be worth whatever's inside, otherwise I'm just going back to plan A for the week."

"Don't worry sir, I'm sure we'll get something of value out of our hard work." Said Orbot, "After all, this ruin looks as if it's been undiscovered for many years, meaning we're this first to see whatever lies inside!"

"Yeah, I'm going the first to take whatever lies in there!" Said Eggman, raising his posture confidently, "After all, stealing undiscovered and unknown power from ancients can only be rewarding and has yet to backfire on me!"

"Erm, well, I'm glad your feeling more confident at least." commented Orbot.

From down in the excavation area, Cubot floated under Eggman's Eggmobile. Cubot was a yellow, cube headed robot with similar design philosophy to Orbot.

"Hold on," Said Cubot from below, "If we were told about this area by some mysterious message, doesn't that mean someone else was here to know about it?"

Orbot attempted to silently tell Cubot to shut up with hand gestures, but Eggman heard the whole line and glared down at Cubot.

"That's beside the point! You two just get back to work and stop ruining my day even further!" Yelled Eggman.

Orbot sighed and raised the small fan back toward Eggman's head, while the Doctor resigned back into an anxious posture.

It was then when Sonic the Hedgehog suddenly ran up to the excavation pit, feet dragging right up to the edge. Eggman immediately glared over at the sound of Sonic's annoying and trademark speed, realigning his Eggmobile to face the hedgehog. Sonic gave a small grin, as he proceeded to say, "Wow Eggman, digging through other people's thousand year old junk again? I thought you were finally respectable."

"For your information, this is an ancient temple, likely to harbor many incredible discoveries that could lead to increasing my standing in the world!" Replied Eggman, as he puffed up his posture in faux confidence.

Now Tails, Amy, and Sticks arrived next to Sonic, trailed by Knuckles who was grumbling as he ran. After a moment or two of awkward waiting on everyone's part, Knuckles lined up next to the others. Overlooking the dig site, Amy gasped in an exaggerated tone while the others were getting ready in their battle poses.

"Eggman! This is clearly destructive to the local environment!" Said Amy. "Now who's gonna enjoy this beach?"

"What's the matter, can't a guy partake in casual archaeological excavation?" Replied Eggman, "Besides, no one used this area of the beach anyway!"

"You're no archeologist!" Yelled Tails. "You just want to steal whatever is valuable and break everything else with no regard to history!"

As if to punctuate Tails' point, Mega shifted to look at Team Sonic, accidentally hitting its arm into the structure, breaking some stones off.

"Yeah? Well that sounds like villain exclusion!" Said Eggman, "Besides, I do know a great archaeological term for this situation. Robots, Attack!"

As Eggman yelled the command, multiple Beebots flew out of hiding and into a formation behind him. Mega aligned itself toward the group's direction and wound up it's drill arm, whilst multiple Crabbots dropped dirt and stones to turn and face the gang. Eggman himself appeared to be readying his Eggmobile to fire at them.

Expecting such a turn of events, Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks readied themselves and counter charged at the horde of badnik robots. Sonic immediately ran fast past multiple Crabbots, and starter doing paced circles around Mega as a distraction. Knuckles and Amy followed in a head on charge and attacked the Crabbots in their moment of distraction. Sticks stayed further back, and got the attention of some Beebots by knocking one down with her boomerang. Tails opted to fly into the air by spinning his twin tails, and head toward Mega in an effort to make use of Sonic's distraction method.

As Tails was flying towards the top of Mega, he pulled a circle shaped device from his belt. A laser blast suddenly flew by Tails' face, while three beebots flew directly at him. The trio of robot Bees continued firing at him as they cut him off midair. Tails managed enough aerial agility to avoid the blasts, but as the Beebots closed in to very close combat, he was grazed by one of the shots. Startled by the stinging pain on his shoulder, Tails resorted to flying backward, away from the Bots.

Suddenly, Tails heard Sonic shout "Look out!", before barely evading a large scoop swinging by as Mega spun around, eye locked on Sonic. Lowering his altitude after the dodge, Tails watched Sonic clear another lap around Mega. With Sonic running at him, Tails picked him up spun him in the air for momentum. Seeing the three Beebots closing in, Tails launched Sonic at the Bots. In quick, simultaneous flashes of blue, two Beebots were destroyed and the third was flip-kicked to the ground.

"Aaugh!" Yelled Eggman, "Mega! Get your gears together and crush that Hedgehog already!"

With Mega's next attack divulged across the battlefield by Eggman, Tails turned around and quickly flew towards the top of the towering robot. Lining itself up with Sonic, Mega raised it's spinning drill arm and threw it down at him. Tails skirted above the spinning drill as it struck past. The drill crashed into the dirt, Sonic jumping above it with high speed, while rocks and clumps of dirt flew into the air with him. Tails landed on Mega's shoulder next to its eye and attached the circular device in his hand, a magnetic clamp, to the metal hull.

Down on the ground, Amy could be seen pulling her hammer from a persistent Crabbot. As she tugged, Amy realized that it wouldn't release it's grasp of her weapon. The Crabbot was then pulled into the air by Amy as she swung it in circles. Knuckles then turned to her and punched the bot into pieces, leaving only a clamped claw on the hammer.

"Thanks Knuckles!" Said Amy.

"Your welcome!" Replied Knuckles, as he punched another Crabbot into the ground.

"Knuckles, Amy!" Yelled Sticks from nearby, "I got one more for ya!"

As another of the remaining Crabbots charged at Sticks, she struck her pole staff down in front of it. The Crabbot reacted by clamping a claw tightly onto the pole. Sticks smiled slyly as she lifted the robot over her shoulder and launched it towards Amy, who in turn smacked it out of the air with her hammer.

Looking back to his position, Tails pulled a small, advanced blowtorch off of his utility belt. Tails grasped the magnetic handle tightly and steadied his position on Mega's shoulder. While Mega jerked around trying to line up another punch at Sonic, Tails lined up his small blowtorch in preparation for some sabotage. He was interrupted by a yell from Eggman, as he flew his Eggmobile towards Mega.

"Hey! Get off my robot!" Yelled Eggman.

A blue glow began to charge at the center front of Eggman's vehicle. Tails knew he was about to be blasted off of Mega. Before he jumped out of the way, Tails saw Sonic launch into the air, spin balling into the Eggmobile. The lazer blast fired, but missed Tails and Mega completely as it blasted another chunk off the top of the Ruin. Tails watched Eggman spin uncontrollably, giving him a moment of opportunity.

While Mega attempted to catch Sonic with its bucket arm, Tails jabbed his blowtorch into the opposite arm's shoulder. Mega seemed to notice the burning cut boring through it's shoulder, as it suddenly jerked and threw it's arm in the air. Tails managed to hang on and keep pressure down on the blow torch as Mega shifted and spun.

Eggman had straightened himself out now, and saw what Tails was up to. Before he could act, Eggman looked down as Amy lobbed Sonic at him with her hammer. The Eggmobile barely dodged backward out of the way.

"Stop that you rodent!" Yelled Eggman as Sonic fell to the ground. "Why are you attacking me so aggressively today!?"

"It's just a sign of affection Egghead! I'd know!" Replied Sonic.

Before Eggman could retort, Mega's drill arm spun up, raised and ready to strike down onto Sonic and Amy. Eggman smiled for a moment. Then another moment passed, as the arm slowly shifted and lowered unnaturally. Ripping metal screeched loudly over the battlefield, and everyone covered their ears. The arm then ripped off of Mega completely with flying sparks. The drill landed on Mega's tread with a thud, whirring for a moment before losing momentum.

"Sorry about the noise!" Apologized Tails as he hovered down and turning off the blow torch.

"Aaugh!" Yelled Eggman again, "Fine, you can have this stupid stone hut, I'm leaving! Robots, retreat!"

Dr. Eggman lowered his vehicle so Cubot could latch onto the side before speeding away. Attempting to follow the retreat order, Mega looked down at the arm on it's lap. After attempting to pick up the drill arm with it's bucket for a few moments, Mega gave up and chased after Eggman, barreling through the sand on its tread. With Eggman gone, the gang was left in a hole full of robot parts, and a nearly collapsed portion of an ancient ruin.

"Well, that went reasonable well." Commented Amy, "Though he did make a mess of the place."

"Yep, we kicked his butt again." Said Sonic, before he turned to Tails, "Good job up there buddy!"

"Thanks, I'm honestly surprised my new magnetic handle worked so well." Replied Tails, as he leaned down and caught his breath, "Might've got myself shook up too much though."

"Hey, why are we patting ourselves on the back when there's a spooky ruin ominously sitting over there?!" Asked Sticks.

"Oh yeah! There's probably all sorts of new archaeological discoveries just waiting in there!" Replied Tails.

"What? No!" Said Sticks, "Messing with something like that is a bad idea, unless you want to release a curse, or a secret underground society!"

"I thought we already did the secret underground society." Commented Knuckles, "Or were they more of a legion?"

"Either way, Sticks has a point, we can't just go poking around some ancient castle." Said Amy.

"Thank you!" Replied Sticks.

"Aw, that's no fun." Said Sonic

"At least not without the proper warrants and paperwork!" punctuated Amy.

"Nevermind, screw you Amy."

* * *

After a run to town, waiting in line, and a meeting with the Mayor, Amy and Tails got to explain the situation. Mayor Fink, a grey furred, somewhat egg shaped mouse with a top hat, seemed mildly upset about the destruction. He did, however, also show interest in their proposal for archaeological research.

The Mayor told Amy and Tails that he would allow their team to search through the ruin. The only conditions be that they don't die, and anything of importance or value go to the villages historical society. Mayor Fink even offered to publicly laud and award them if they found something of great value inside, to which Tails had mixed feelings about. Though somewhat under the table, Amy was satisfied with verbal permission.

Somewhere along the way, news of the excavated ruin spread around town, spreading mass apathy about the situation. This did not mean the local news wouldn't try to play up the discovery.

Standing at the edge of the excavated hole, Soar, the turquoise eagle wearing a pink polo shirt, readied his microphone. The Walrus camera man finished adjusting the lens on their TV camera, and began recording.

"This is Soar the Eagle reporting live from the dastardly digsite of a spooky manor. Of which is said to harbor some sort of wickedness!"

As the camera panned over the area, a stone fell from the top of the bastion. Knuckles, who was carrying robot parts out of the pit, walked nearby the camera.

"As you can see, this castle-like ruin has been revealed just days now before Halloween, a correlation our team believes is not coincidence!" Continued Soar. "Could this discovery mean Halloween his year will be far more terrifying? You should be sure to tune in as often as possible to find out!"

"Do is really have to? I don't even own a TV." Asked Knuckles.

"What? Oh, you can just watch at someone else's house." Replied Soar.

"Should I stop the recording?" Asked the Camera Man.

"You haven't already? Yes, turn it off!"

Shortly after most other spectators got bored and left, Sonic, Tails and the group gathered at the door of the Ruin. After a moment of pushing on the large half-buried doors, everyone but Knuckles gave up and stepped back.

"It's not budging at all!" Said Tails.

Continuing to push on the door to no avail, Knuckles Said, "What gives? I thought I was strong!"

"This place must've been here so long the door jammed." Said Amy.

"Either the inside is buried too, or this is a pull door." Suggested Tails.

Sticks threw her hands in the air dramatically, "Well, I guess we're not getting inside, let's go home!"

Sonic stepped in front of Sticks, "Hold on, what has you so pent up about this thing? It looks like any of the other ruins we've carelessly jumped into."

"I'm pent up because it doesn't!" Retorted Sticks, "The architecture is completely different from most of the ancient temples on this island! Not too mention I've never even heard any rumors about a place like this, which only means there's unknown trouble here."

"Sticks has a point," Said Amy, "This place isn't built like the other temples we've been to."

Tails stared down at his wrist communicator device, running a scanner function on the Door. "I don't have any good reading inside, either. So I can't tell if its caved in or trapped."

"So then what?" Asked Sonic. "You think we should just rebury this thing until Eggman comes back?"

"Actually no. While I may be an engineer, learning more of this architectural discovery is very exciting!" Said Tails, "Besides, I'm sure we can handle anything dangerous inside."

Sticks sighed and lowered her arms in defeat, "Fine, but if there's any form of curse in there, you're the one gettin' it for roping me into this."

"Uh, sure, okay." Replied Tails with a chuckle.

The group decided to look around the exposed structure for any openings or gaps inside. After a period of hovering around the roof of the bastion like outcropping, Tails saw the stone roof caved in where the structure was blasted by Eggman. Landing nearby, Tails looked more closely, and saw that multiple stones fell into a darkened hole. It was big enough that Tails would probably fit through.

"Find anything up there?" Asked Amy.

"Yeah, there's a hole up here!"

"Let me have a look!" Responded Sonic.

Within a moment, Sonic ran up the side of the dig site. Sonic jumped high with his momentum, and arced himself toward Tails. Upon landed, a few more stones around the gap shifted. As one stone shifted under him, Tails wobbled and almost fell forward, before Sonic caught him by a tail.

"Woah, careful buddy." Said Sonic as he released Tails' tail.

"Likewise Sonic!" Replied Tails, jabbing Sonic on the shoulder lightly.

Both of them steadied themselves around the gap in the structure, looking down into the obscured darkness. Pressing a button on his wrist device, Tails shined a light down inside. The two saw a tile floor about a few stories drop down. Tails wasn't able to get much more of a view from here, but the floor appeared to be covered with some dirt and multiple fallen stones.

"Well, let's go in!" Said Sonic.

Tails nodded, and grabbed Sonic by the arms as he propelled himself to the air with his tails. With a bit of careful shimmying, the two dropped into the gap, and lowered down to the floor. As they descended, the air became cold, smelling damp and dirty like a cave. Sonic jumped down from Tails' grasp, and activated the luminescent lighting function on his uniform, lighting up the surrounding area with blue-tinted light.

Around them, Sonic and Tails saw the stone walls, which didn't look much different inside aside from being damp. The floor was covered in stone debris around them. Walking to the front where the large door was, they saw a metal grated portcullis gate sitting in the way of the outside door. The wooden door pressed against the metal, likely due to the weight of the dirt outside.

"Woah, this place is kind of like a castle!" Said Sonic as they looked at the gate.

"Yeah. I think there might be a way to lift this, then we can open the main door," Said Tails.

Hovering up to the top of the portcullis grate, Tails found old rusty chains connected to the metal gate. The chains led up into a mechanical structure above the gate, before being followed down the side to a winch wheel sitting adjacent to the opposite wall.

"Oh, this must open it!" Said Tails as the winch came into view.

Sonic ran up next to it, and said, "Ooo, rudimentary."

"Yeah, compared to other places we've been."

"Well, let's see if we can get this thing moving!"

The two grabbed onto opposite sides of the winch wheel, and started pulling it. After a moment of strain, it shifted, and turned a bit before jamming again. The portcullis gate lifted an inch or two as a result. Continuing to pull on it, Sonic and Tails managed to shift the winch a bit more, lifting the gate up a few more inches.

"This, is really, heavy!" Said Sonic.

As Tails was about to reply, they were interrupted by a screeching sound and a crash. The chain connected to the winch broke and whiplashed at them. Sonic and Tails jumped back as the chain whipped into the winch mechanism, and the portcullis gate fell to the ground with a thunk, multiple stones falling from above it. As the two stood back up, The metal gate shifted forward towards them. Sonic and Tails watched as the gate pulled down a chunk of the metal mechanism and more rocks as it fell forward.

Sonic and Tails backed up as all of this came crashing down. The portcullis landed on the ground in front of them with a crash. As more stones fell from above the gate, the whole structure shook, threatening to collapse. Suddenly, the front doors flung open, light flowing in and a gust of wind blowing through the room. With it, Knuckles fell face forward inside with a mound of dirt that poured overtop the rubble.

"Holy cow, maybe we should've of done that." Said Tails as he hung onto Sonic.

Pushing Tails off of himself, Sonic replied, "Well, it turned out fine. I think."

Knuckles lifted himself out of the dirt, and shouted, "Guys! I did it! I just needed to push half of the wall over!"

"What did you two do? Set off a bomb?!" Chastised Amy as she walked inside.

"Sorry Amy, but there wasn't a warning sign to tell us that opening the door would almost crush us to death." Answered Sonic.

"Well I'm glad your okay, but we should be more careful in here."Said Amy, "This place could fall on top of us."

Sticks followed Amy inside cautiously and scrutinized the inside of the Ruin. With the outdoor light pouring in, the whole area was visible. The room was was mostly made up of the tall stone walls and a roof, with no decoration or adornment. In the back wall was an empty archway leading further into the dungeon-like structure.

"I might've been wrong about this place, it just looks like a dump." Said Sticks.

Tails had his wrist scanner running again, and pointed it towards the back wall, "It looks like there's just one large room back there. Or maybe the rest of this place is collapsed and buried beyond that."

"We'll just have one quick look and then were out of here, I don't want to die from a cave in of all things." Said Sonic as he walked up to the archway, lighting up the area with his glowing attire.

Everyone else agreed to this notion, and activated their own luminescent uniforms before following Sonic and Tails into the next room.

As the next room slowly illuminated, they saw an expansive hall. The air felt colder still, and the smell of metal and mildew permeated the room. Against both sides of the walls were rusted metal cages, hooked by chain to a mechanism that ran down both walls to the back of the hall. There were arches on both sides of the hall's walls that were buried and blocked off by dirt and rubble. The center of the room had a long, wooden table that had fallen from its legs due to rot. All the way at the back of the hall, the wall rounded around a strange stone and iron Altar.

"Nevermind, this place is spooky, like some sort of cult hideout or something." Said Sticks, staying behind the rest of the group.

"My guess is this is some sort of dungeon, otherwise this room wouldn't be so drab." Said Amy.

"Yeah, I don't see anything here that'd be useful beyond torturing somebody." Said Sonic, walking over to one of the cages and poking the metal.

"But there is something strange about this room," Said Tails, pointing his scanner at the walls and ceiling, "Being it's one of the only rooms not collapsed, it must be more structurally sound for some reason."

"Oh no! Structural integrity is the most horrifying thing about Halloween!" Yelled Knuckles, shivering due to fear and the temperature.

Tails continued walking forward towards the back of the hall, and everyone else slowly followed as the conversation continued.

"But look at this big, Altar like thing!" Said Tails, "There's clearly a mystery to be solved here."

Now in clearer view, the altar appear to be a large rectangular stone table. The top surface however, was metal plated. There was some form of ancient text no one could read lining the perimeter. Directly above on the ceiling was a sharp looking metal rod, that when visible by the group, gave everyone pause. More ominously, on the center of the altar appeared to be a large, fanged, monster's skull, presiding above a pool of purplish liquid.

"Ah, uhm, that looks like a torture device…" Said Tails. "Maybe this is just a messed up dungeon…"

"Yeah, aside from being a decent haunted house, I think this place is a bust." Replied Sonic.

"Wait, what kind of skull is that?" Asked Tails, and he cautiously walked closer to get a better look, "It looks like some kind of large canine? I'm not a biologist, but maybe this is a new discovery."

"Hey uh, Tails, you're pretty close to that possibly-a-torture device." Said Sonic nervously, the chilly air getting to his nerves.

Looking down at the skull, then looking back up at the sharp metal spike, Tails turned around and asked, "Sticks, can I borrow your stick?"

"Do I look like a stick pawn shop?" Replied Sticks, "Aw nevermind, just don't say I didn't warn you not to poke that spooky altar with a stick, because I am warning you right now."

Grasping Sticks' pole staff, Tails turned back to the altar and used it to poke all around the surface. When it landed in the purple liquid, it just splashed a bit. Poking the skull also did nothing. So Tails lifted the pole up to the metal spike and poked the end of it, before smacking it pretty hard.

"Okay, I think it's fine. You can have your staff back now," Said Tails.

Sticks looked at her pole staff for a moment, and replied, "No thanks, you can keep it."

Tails shrugged, and put the pole down. He then reached his arms over and grabbed the top of the mysterious skull, much to the chagrin of Sonic, Amy, and Sticks. After a moment of attempting to lift the skull to no avail, Tails released it.

"Woah Tails, maybe you shouldn't just try to take the spooky and threatening skull off of the spooky and threatening table." Said Sonic.

"Well I didn't detect any electricity or power here, and I don't think this mechanism, if there is one, works anymore." Said Tails, "But that skull is stuck there for some reason."

"Oh, I can probably get it!" Said Knuckles, "I've had a great track record of strength today."

Grasping and lifting up of the skull for a moment, Knuckles couldn't get it too budge more than a bit. He then took a deep breath, as if he was about to put all of his strength into it.

"Wait, don't break it!" Yelled Tails.

"Aw, I thought I had it though!" Replied Knuckles as he released his grip.

"Well maybe there something under it keeping it stuck." Suggested Tails.

Tails reached his left arm under the the skull, and into the purple liquid, inciting a gasp from Amy, and a stressed huff from Sonic as he puffed his cheeks. The liquid was about as cold as the air, and it felt mildly syrupy. Tails felt around under the skull, touching the teeth lightly. He then lowered his hand further into the liquid, were he felt some kind of latch or handle.

Grabbing and pulling the handle caused skull to lift up suddenly, causing Tails to jump. Seeing it lifted up, Tails assumed the skull must be loosening. He fiddled around with the handle some more, before finding it willing to push forward. At this point, the handle stopped, and Tails pushed it down. This was when the Skull shifted as if it was loose for a moment, and then snapped down on Tails' arm.

"Aah!" Shouted Tails, as his arm was stuck tightly in place in the jaws of the skull.

"Are you alright?!" Asked Sonic as he appeared beside Tails.

"Yeah, I'm just kinda stuck." Replied Tails.

Suddenly, the metal spike above the altar flashed, and flashed again with an arch of electricity. From his wrist, Tails' scanner device started beeping in alarm.

"Uh, okay, get me out of here!" Said Tails.

Sonic simply nodded and immediately tried prying the skull up, Knuckles quickly grabbing the other side and lifting as well. While trying to pull his arm out, Tails felt the skull's teeth start piercing his flesh painfully. A second later, a flash of lighting emanating from the metal pole above arched onto the skull and altar, blinding everyone. All Tails heard in his panic were the startled screams of his friends.

In the instant of the electric flash, Sonic and Knuckles both recoiled back, eyes blinded. While they weren't looking, the skull lifted it's maw and Tails had fallen backwards to the floor with a light thud. Blinking for a moment, Sonic's vision adjusted and cleared. He and the others looked down to see Tails lying on the tile floor, eyes wide and arms shaking as he gasped for air.

"Tails!" Yelled Sonic as he immediately knelt down, "Are you okay?!"

Tails' shaky eyes meeting Sonic's, filled with a fear that Sonic was all too familiar with. Tails mouth moved for a moment like he wanted to talk, but he was unable to stop hyperventilating.

"Is he in shock?" Asked Amy, "What did that thing do to him?"

"I'm pretty sure it electrocuted him." Said Knuckles.

Amy glared at Knuckles, but then rescinded her contempt.

"I-I think…" Started Tails' shaky voice.

Before continuing, Tails reached over to his left arm, now bruised and in pain. He looked back up too Sonic, who's concerned gaze compelled Tails to finish.

"I should, have saw that coming…" Tails continued, trying to lift up to a sitting position, "That was scary."

Sonic and Amy grabbed each of Tails's shoulders and helped him sit up. Tails immediately looked at the altar and saw Sticks leaning over it, scrutinizing the trap. Most of the altar and surrounding area were visible with the light emanating from their uniforms. Aside from a bit of hovering smoke, it didn't look too different.

"Yeah, that was scary." Said Sonic, redirecting Tails' vision, "Do you feel alright?"

"My arm is sore now, more than before."

"You clearly need to get bandaged up." Said Amy.

"Yeah, let's get home buddy." Said Sonic with a nod.

The Sonic and Amy lifted Tails to his feet. After a moment of swinging his tails to gain some balance, he was able to walk on his own.

"Now hold on," Said Sticks, "Something is wrong with this thing."

"Uh, yeah, obviously." Replied Sonic.

"No! Come look!"

Sonic rolled his eyes, but Tails was quick to see what Sticks was talking about. Slowing his pace and cautiously watching the metal rod in the ceiling, Tails walked next to Sticks. Looking down on the table, Tails and the others saw that the skull itself looked unchanged, but the small pool of purple liquid under it was gone. The bowl that the liquid previously resided in looked stained with some form of caramelized substance, but that didn't account for the rest.

"Woah, that purple soda stuff evaporated!" Said Knuckles.

"That, that doesn't make sense." Said Tails with a surprised expression.

"Why doesn't it?" Asked Sonic.

"Because if it was that hot, it would've left that skull more charred." Said Tails, rubbing his arm nervously, "That, and my arm would've burned."

"Tails," Said Sticks, "I really think you might've been cursed with something there."

"I don't know about that," Said Tails, "But I would like to know what that stuff was now."

"Well there's probably some on Sticks' pole staff now." Suggested Amy.

"Oh yeah!" Said Tails.

Reaching to the floor and picking up the pole staff, Tails could see that the end he'd poked the liquid with was still damp.

"Okay, that's fine," Said Sonic while tapping his foot. "But we really should leave before we trip another trap."

The group agreed, and started to quickly head toward the exit of the Ruin. Knuckles stopped behind everyone and looked back. Without the others noticing at first, Knuckles jogged back to the Altar.

"Oh Tails," Said Knuckles, turning everyone's head, "You forgot that skull you wanted!"

"Don't touch that!" Yelled everyone simultaneously.

After coaxing Knuckles back outside with them, everyone noticed that the day was rapidly fading into evening. The air humidity seemed to be getting replaced with a cool breeze. The scene on the horizon made it clear that a thunderstorm was brewing as a result of the humidity. Tails verbally groaned as he realized this, his two tails drooping subtly.

"Hey buddy," Said Sonic, "After we get you patched up, mind if I stay at your place for the night?"

Tails raised his eyebrow curiously, "Uh, why?"

"Well, y'know it looks like there's gonna be a thunderstorm tonight. Not that I think you're gonna be bothered by that-"

Tails huffed and furrowed his brow as he figured out Sonic was worried about him and his old fear of lighting. After another moment, Tails looked down sheepishly at the thought that Sonic was worried about him. He then looked back up and smiled at Sonic thankfully for being worried about him. With that last non verbal confirmation, Sonic smiled back.

Outside of Team Sonic's collective view, a figure slowly appeared at the edge of the pit. It's head slowly scanned around the exposed Ruin, before locking it's gaze on Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks. The figure waited, staring at all of them as they walked out of view, before slinking down into the pit itself. With a short look around the area, the figure hustled inside the Ruin.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

Thanks for taking the time to look at this story I produced. It is a Halloween themed werewolf trope based story, based in the setting of the Sonic Boom television series.

This is my first foray into Fanfiction in years, but I have read up on writing techniques, and prepared an outline with many notes for the arc of plot and story. I hope you enjoy it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2, Terror of the Ancients**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

As the sun set, a new scheme was afoot inside of Dr. Eggman's hightech lair. In one of many white metal rooms, Eggman was slouched over a control panel, typing on a keyboard. On the wall in front of him was a large, red-tinted screen displaying various schematics and data. While Eggman worked, the large door in the wall behind him opened with a whir. With a quick glance, Eggman saw Orbot and Cubot hovering into the room.

"What do you two want?" Asked Eggman.

"Well sir, we thought it would be prudent if you told us what your next plan is?" Said Orbot.

"Yeah, Sonic kind of already ruined your plans ." Added Cubot

Dr. Eggman sat up with a huff and said, "No, Sonic did not ruin my plans! He just stopped me from wasting my time on that boondoggle!" Eggman picked a rolled up paper map from the side of his control panel, and threw it into a sterile white trashcan nearby. "Besides, strange maps sent to me by strangers are bound to be scams."

Despite the fact that the map clearly led to an undiscovered Ruin, Orbot decided not to correct his irritable boss. Eggman stood up as he pressed a button on his control panel. This caused a familiar robot schematic to appear the middle of the large red-tinted screen. The schematic appeared to be of a skeleton-like, white and grey robot, with swirling red eyes.

"Back to my plan A, I have decided to modify Dreamcaster, my old mind control robot." Stated Eggman "Now it will subtly insert a specific phobia into anyone's subconscious. Then I should be able to exploit that phobia, and force the village, including Sonic, to bow before me in terror!"

Eggman finished his monologue with a dramatic pose. Orbot quickly lauded Eggman with some mediocre metallic clapping. Cubot however, rubbed his square metal head.

"Uh boss, wouldn't it make more sense to just have it brainwash everyone again?" Asked Cubot, "And didn't that robot lose control when people wore tinfoil hats?"

Eggman glared down at Cubot, "Last time I tried to mentally enslave the village with Dreamcaster, tinfoil was a problem. But I've modified Dreamcaster to only subtly impact people's minds so it will leave a more permanent, albeit less controlling, affect on them! Plus its cheaper now, best of both worlds."

"Very impressive master!" Commented Orbot, "When do we start?"

Eggman turned back to the control panel and entered a few commands, bringing some new data onto the large screen. With a short moment of analyzing the information, Eggman had his answer.

"I'll have Dreamcaster fully re-assembled tomorrow. Which means we should have everyone fearing the same thing by Halloween!"

"Hold on," said Cubot, "What are we going to make them fear?"

Eggman raised his finger as if about to answer, but moved it to his chin as he thought.

"Well, uh, I'm not sure." Said Eggman, "I guess making them fear me would work best."

"Wouldn't that make everyone run away from you, not submit?" Asked Orbot.

Dr. Eggman grumbled and glared at his minions, but he did realize they had a point. He had to somehow use fear to manipulate the village into serving him. But how? An idea blinked into his mind.

"I've got it!" Announced Eggman, "I'll make them fear something only I can protect them from, and coerce them into serving me for safety! I'll figure out the details tomorrow."

"Well, I'm sure all of your hard work won't go to waste this time." Said Orbot.

"Of course it won't." Replied Eggman "I'm the most relevant villain around after all!"

* * *

Once Tails made his way home, Amy and Sonic saw to the proper bandaging of his left arm. Tails' arm had sore bite marks, as well as a light laser burn from Eggman's Beebot. After cleaning his wounds, Tails quickly isolated and preserved some of the strange liquid residue left on Sticks' pole staff. While Tails worked on this, Sonic went with Amy on her way home.

By the time Sonic had returned, Tails had already started the assembly of a simple, for Tails at least, chemical analysis machine. After drawing up loose schematics, Tails had constructed the basic shell of a machine. With the parts and tools in his workshop, Tails quickly put together a centrifuge, installed a computer tower, and began downloading relevant software he'd tweak and install later.

As the night fell and the thunderstorm slowly rolled in, Tails finally noticed Sonic had returned after nearly a half hour. With the exhaustion, pain in his arm, and an incoming thunderstorm, Tails opted to finish his work in the morning. As night fell, Sonic and Tails spent some time playing video games and chatting.

Once it was raining an even downpour outside, Tails had quickly felt more exhausted. After some urging from Sonic, Tails decided to attempt sleeping. Despite very light thunder, Tails found himself quickly falling into a deep slumber.

That is until Tails heard a loud crash followed by crackling, causing his body to jump up. As his eyes shot open Tails saw only the darkened room of his house. His ears flicked a bit as they heard the consistent rattle of rain, reminding Tails about the thunderstorm. Seeing that everything was otherwise fine, Tails slumped back into his blanket with a frustrated grumble. While curling up, Tails winced a bit as he bumped the bandages on his left arm.

While trying to regain his will to sleep, Tails watched a sudden burst of light flashing outside. Reacting quickly, he covered his ears right as the crash and crackle of thunder shook through the house. The sound still induced a small jump as he whined unconsciously. After a second of gaining his composure back, Tails glared at the windows. This was when he noticed a constant and dimmer light reflecting off the wall in his periphery. Something, his television, was left on.

Curled up and tightly tucked in a lime green blanket, Tails wondered if it'd be worth it to check if Sonic was up. He'd rather fall back to sleep, but the light emanating from the television nagged his nerves. As he argued with himself, a lighter rumble of thunder rolled through the house, causing Tails' body to twitch. The rolling thunder slowly faded, and Tails sighed, frustrated he couldn't will his muscles and nerves to settle.

His mind made up, Tails uncurled and sat up, pulling his blanket up with him. Tails lowered his feet into his shoes and stood up. Now standing, he could see the television, of which was only running static as it filled the house with a fuzzy, dim light. Walking closer revealed his personal hero and friend, Sonic, lying asleep on the couch. Sonic's head rested on the couch's arm and his arm drooped lazily to the floor. Tails gave an exaggerated frown and mentally scoffed at the mess of pillows and controller wires strewn about.

Sonic didn't open his eyes, but he quietly said, "Heya buddy…"

Tails froze in place and cocked his head, staring silently at Sonic. The line was spoken so sluggishly that he was unsure if Sonic was actually awake. Tails didn't want to wake up him up if he was still asleep. As Tails pondered, Sonic responded to the scrutinized silence by turning his head a bit and opening his eyes. Seeing Tails lingering next to the couch and draped in a blanket, Sonic closed his eyes again.

"Trouble sleeping?"

"Well..." Started Tails quietly, "I just thought I'd clean up your mess a bit."

Sonic's eyes opened again, now peeking at the pillows strewn about and running television, before closing again.

"Sorry, I just kind of passed out… thought you were sleeping like a rock there."

"I wish."

The rumble of rain on the roof had noticeably lightened up now. As a moment passed, Tails started to wonder if it was silly to get up. Maybe the storm was already passing now. Perhaps he should've stayed in bed.

That's when another distinct flash of lighting appeared in the windows. Tails tried to quickly cover his ears without dropping the blanket. The flash was followed by a bang and crackle that tore through the house. This caused Tails to jump again, nerves refusing to obey him. He punctuated the jump with an audible grunt as he tried desperately not to whine, like some kid.

By the time Tails was paying attention again, Sonic had sat up and made room on the couch. Tails' ears shifted down with embarrassment, but Sonic simply patted the couch. Without further hesitation, Tails sat down and leaned on Sonic's shoulder.

"How's the arm treating you?" Asked Sonic.

"Could be better, but it's not a big problem."

"I suppose that's good."

A long moment passed as Tails anxiously looked around the room, eyes occasionally fixating on the television static.

"You'd think I'd be over this by now." Said Tails before sighing.

"Hm," muttered Sonic, "You'd think I'd be over swimming by now."

Tails gave a light chuckle, "It's not even constant fear anymore, just some dread… but for the second lighting and thunder crash, it feels-"

Before Tails could finish his thought, another flash light up the curtains, including one behind the television. As Tails was about to brace, he distinctly saw a figure's silhouette behind the curtain. As the flash flickered on, the silhouette moved across the window. It disappeared as the lightning ceased.

"Did-" Tails started to talk, but was cut off by the repeated crackling of thunder, causing him to jump and yelp.

"Wait, what?" Asked Sonic as he held Tails.

"I-I," Tails coughed to calm his vocal nerves, "I could've sworn I saw someone outside."

"I saw it too," replied Sonic as he stood up, "I wonder if someone is plotting something this late at night."

Tails shot to his feet as well, dropping the blanket behind him. He felt dread about going outside where the thunder would be less muffled. Yet Tails knew he wouldn't sleep well unless he made sure one of the numerous villains on this island wasn't mucking about.

"Alright, I'll get my gear." Said Tails as he ran over to his bed.

"I can check it real quick." Said Sonic. "You just wait here."

Before Tails could argue, Sonic had opened and stepped out of the door. An automatic porch light light up the area outside. As Tails put on his his work belt, his wrist communicator started beeping loudly as it sat on the corner table. Swiftly checking the device, Tails saw that the alarm was triggered from his Workshop, which was right nextdoor.

"Sonic, the alarm went off in the Workshop!" Tails yelled to the door.

"Alright, I'm on it!" Replied Sonic

In a blue blur, Sonic sprinted from the porch and into the rain. Tails ran out the door and looked toward the Workshop. With the area illuminated by multiple outdoor lights, everything normal from here. Tails caught a glimpse of Sonic slipping into the workshop, so he decided to chase after him. With the medium downpour of rain soaking him, Tails slide to a stop as he reached the open door.

"Sonic?" Said Tails as he approached.

As Tails called out, Sonic dashed back outside and scanned around the visible area.

"I think they booked it when your alarm went off."

As Tails was about to reply, a light crack of thunder caused him to shake, throwing some rain off of himself.

"Did, did you see them?" Tails managed to ask.

"No," replied Sonic, "Wait!"

Tails turned around to see a figure in a brown coat rushing away into obscured darkness. Sonic didn't say another word as he dashed after the figure with blinding speed, kicking a path of water into the air behind him. Mildly startled, Tails worked up the nerve to run after them. Sonic quickly disappeared into the rain and darkness ahead while Tails tried to keep up on foot.

As he ran out of the visible light, Tails heard a muffled thud, followed by a shout from Sonic. Heart skipping a beat, Tails spun his two tails and increased his momentum toward the noise. With visibility lowering, Tails activated the illumination function on his uniform. Seeing nothing but rain and wet beach sand, Tails yelled out, "Sonic?!"

After a second, maybe two, Tails was about to yell again. That's when the light revealed a fallen palm tree, and Sonic trapped underneath. Skidding to a stop, Tails heard Sonic mumbling aloud in anger as he tried to push the tree from his legs.

"What happened?!" Asked Tails.

"That thing," said Sonic, pausing to try and lift up the tree, "Knocked a tree on me!"

Looking over the tree, Tails saw a glimpse of the figure. A tall, imposing silhouette stood at the edge of the visible light emanating from Tails' uniform. It definitily appears larger now than his earlier sighting. Jumping in front of the fallen tree and Sonic, Tails held his wrench out defensively, eyes locked on the figure. His mind anxiously deliberated how best to defend himself and Sonic.

As Tails considered his options, a massive arc of lightning flashed behind the creature silently. Tails' eyes widened and his heart felt like it stopped. Ahead was a large, grey-furred, large fanged, wolf-like creature with dark purple eyes and intimidating claws. In the second the creature was visible to Tails and Sonic, it bent down as if about to charge. Tails froze in place, as he suddenly tried to brace himself for the oncoming thunder and a fight.

An inexorably loud crash of thunder slammed Tails, deafening his ears and throwing him face forward to the ground. The ensuing panic had completely wiped Tails' cognition of the situation. Shaking violently and gasping for air, Tails' vision faded to blurred and the rain muffled. The first thing Tails remembered was the waves of pain in his left arm as he tried to pull himself up. The rain on his back reminded him of the weather, and Tails recalled the dire situation he was in.

Tails tried to throw himself back to his feet, only resulting in his limbs spastically flailing, as his face fell back into the mud. Both tails flailing erratically, Tails could only get his legs and right arm to shakily move in increments despite his mental begging. The sheer panic of his nerves wouldn't subside. Realizing he was likely out of time, Tails closed his eyes, expecting to be mauled any second.

That was when he felt a hand on his shoulder, causing his whole body to jump. One of his tails responding by slapping the figure above him ineffectively.

"Tails?!" Yelled Sonic's muffled voice, "It's me! Tails!"

With one big gasp of air and a bit of mud, Tails' vision and hearing suddenly cleared. Still shivering, Tails turned his widened eyes to see Sonic kneeling over him. The panic in his mind faded for a second, before he remembered the creature and turned his head forward. All he saw ahead of him was the light downpour of rain onto the empty beach.

"That thing ran off when the lightning struck." Said Sonic.

Tails' felt a sigh escape his lungs. Sonic held him up above the mud as he started to pace his breathing and regain his composure. As he tried to push himself up, Tails' his left arm trembling in exacerbated pain. Sonic lifted him to a sitting position now, and waited patiently for Tails to communicate in any manner.

"I, I," Tails held his chest and slowed his breathing to deeper breaths, "S-sorry…"

"You're fine buddy." Replied Sonic.

Tails wrapped his tails around himself as the cold temperature of the rain started to set in. Looking back up at Sonic again with his blue eyes, Tails said, "We... we should go, back inside."

Sonic nodded, and carefully lifted Tails to his feet, "Good idea, we can deal with that thing in the morning."

Tails felt the panic in his nerves quell while they walked back to his house. It took some time for Sonic and Tails to clean themselves up from wet sand and wet water. Tails had to change his bandages as a result of all the rain. The rain outside had slowed to a trickle, and the thunder grew more distant and muffled.

Before returning to bed, Tails checked the security footage from in and around his Workshop. While the security system detected one of the doors being pried open, the camera didn't get a clear look at the Figure. The Figure was in covered by a brown cloak at this point. Strangely, it definitely appeared shorter and smaller than the monster they saw. Exhausted, Tails opted to reactivate his security systems and go to bed.

With the doors locked and alarm system primed, Sonic and Tails both tried to get some sleep. In the morning they would gather their friends and try to find the creature. Despite his exhaustion, sleeping was more difficult now for Tails as he shifted in his bed anxiously. His mind was constantly running images of the creature and planning ways to find and trap it. Tails even sat up to take quick notes just to appease his overactive mind. Eventually though, due to sheer exhaustion, Tails did manage to fall to sleep.

* * *

The very next morning, Tails and Sonic were up before the sunrise. Tails decided to finish the assembly of his chemical analysis machine. Since Sonic was fast, he went out to gather the rest of the group. While time passed, Tails noticed it was taking a while for Sonic to return. He started to ponder why whilst running software tests on his machine.

Tails figured Sonic would rather go on an extended run than wait for everyone to gather. Or perhaps the blue blur was slowed down by his friends. While Sonic could relay a message and return, he might've decided to hang out one of the others. Tails knew himself to be lacking in conversational skills while focused on work. Heh, He might even be waiting up for Amy.

That was when a knock came to Tails' Workshop door. Opening the door, Tails saw a familiar bright yellow fox wearing a crimson red dress. Next to her was a short, brown furred beaver with two large front teeth.

"Oh, Zooey!" Said Tails, "And, you…"

"It's Fastidious." Said Fastidious the Beaver.

"Oh, Okay."

"I thought you two knew each other, but-." Zooey stopped as she shook her head, "We wanted to talk about that Ruin you and Sonic were in yesterday."

"Oh! Your in the historical society?" Asked Tails, "I thought you were in the book club."

"We're expanding our horizons." Replied Zooey, "But that doesn't matter much, I just thought you'd want to know that, well, I think somebody ransacked it overnight."

Tails raised his eyebrow, the thought of the monster-like humanoid from last night flashed in his mind. He then realized that Zooey just implied she was in that Ruin, of which is falling apart and had at least one trap. "Uhm, I think you guys shouldn't be going in there yet."

Zooey's gaze drifted to Tails' bandaged left arm, "Oh, right, the traps! Amy warned us, but we thought we could handle it as long as we just stuck to photography."

"Correction, you thought you could handle it." Corrected the usually correct Fastidious beaver, "The others and I just waited outside when we noticed the whole front gate had recently collapsed."

Tails' ears lowered, "Yeah, sorry about that. But what makes you think someone else went through?"

Zooey regained her train of thought, "Amy told us what happened before she went home last night, probably as a warning-"

"Definitely as a warning." Interjected Fastidious.

"Yeah. But that skull she mentioned on that Altar, it's gone!" Finished Zooey finally.

Fastidious was about to correct Zooey's sentence structure, but Sonic the Hedgehog interjected into the conversation from behind them.

"That thing is gone? But it was a trap!" Said Sonic loudly, "Also, what'd I miss?"

Zooey narrowed her eyes and puffed her cheeks, "Y'know what? I'll just show you!" She then looked at Tails, "If your comfortable with that, I mean."

* * *

Back inside the Ruin, Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Sticks, and Tails' observed the changes to the Altar area. The skull was indeed missing. More noticeably, a clear rectangular portion of the wall behind it had fallen forward. The light emanating from the group's uniforms revealed that there was a large divot in the wall, now empty. The divot clearly had some form of a fabric lining, making it appear similar to the inside of a coffin.

Sticks was already mumbling to herself as she scrutinized the scene, likely trying to place which conspiracy this might allude to. Tails was running the scanner on his wrist again, albeit from further back.

"Well that's spooky." Said Sonic.

"I know, right?" Replied Zooey with a sigh.

Sticks turned her head back to the group, her facial expression suggesting that she just placed a connection in her mind.

"Guys, I think we released some kind of monster!" Sticks starting to exposite, "And not just any monster, but a Dracowerepyre!"

Zooey cocked her head in confusion, while everyone else sighed. Except Knuckles, who screamed, "Oh No! That's my biggest fear!"

"No it's not." Said Amy in a condescending yet calming tone.

"It's not?" Asked Knuckles, "Oh yeah, I forgot that I don't fear anything!"

"No, I mean that thing doesn't exist." Said Amy as she looked at Sticks, "What even is that supposed to be?"

An echoing yell came from all the way back at the entrance to the Ruin, "It's an incorrect mashup of the words dragon, werewolf and vampire, which doesn't make sense linguistically because-"

"WE GOT IT FASTIDIOUS!" Yelled Zooey.

"Okay!" Came a reply.

"How to you work with him?" Asked Sonic.

Zooey shrugged, "I can handle extreme personalities."

Tails' ears lowered in bashfulness behind her, feeling a bit self-conscious about his own tendency to ramble exposition. Sticks however, was having no more of this small talk as she said, "Either way, there is clearly something supernatural going on here! And Tails might've made himself a cursed target!"

"Or it could just be good ole' fashion grave robbing." Suggested Knuckles, causing Zooey to raise her eyebrow at his word choices.

"Well, Eggman might've came back and found something we missed." Said Amy.

"Hold on." Said Tails, "We can figure out if it was opened from the outside by looking at clues around it." He then took a step away from the Altar, "But I don't feel like getting closer."

"It's 'cause you're cursed!" Said Sticks, pointing her finger at Tails.

"It's 'cause he's traumatized." Said Sonic, "Please stop trying to give him more anxiety."

"I'm not getting more anxiety, I don't believe in curses." Said Tails.

"What if curses believe in you?" Suggested Sticks.

"Sticks!" Said Sonic.

Whilst the team bickered amongst themselves, Zooey had walked over and investigated the hole in the wall herself. She first saw the chunk of missing wall on the floor behind the Altar, suggesting it fell forward. Zooey then started to closely examine the hole for further clues. Knuckles noticed what Zooey was up to, and walked over, analyzing it for himself from the other side. As Zooey looked over things, Knuckles mimicked her movements and mannerisms, apparently thinking it'd make him better at investigation.

"I think," started Zooey, diverting everyone's attention to her, "I think that it was opened from the outside."

Knuckles stood tall next to her, and said, "I concur!"

Sticks raised her eyebrow, and ran over, scrutinizing the area herself. After a moment, Sticks gasped lightly and looked up to Zooey, "Good eye, I guess I probably should have looked at it first."

"So uh, how do you know?" Asked Sonic.

"There's gashes in the stone wall right next to the hole, like someone was prying this bit open." Explained Zooey.

"That makes sense," said Tails, "but I wonder how they knew where to look. Do you know what was in there?"

"Oh, there was definitely a skeleton in there." Said Sticks.

Everyone was about to question Sticks' statement, but Zooey said, "Yes, there are clearly cadavre pieces in here, and it kinda smells."

"Wait, there was actually a body in here?" Asked Knuckles.

"Yup."

"AAH!" Knuckles quickly ran away from the hole and hid behind Sonic. Zooey seemed relieved by his reaction for some reason.

"Alright, any ideas on what that thing Tails and I saw last night was up to?"

"I'm betting it probably has something to do with this." Suggested Amy, "Even if it's just correlated by timing, we should find them and question them."

"If they can be reasoned with." Said Sonic.

"We should probably question Eggman too." Said Tails, "It is Halloween soon after all, and maybe he has some sick skeleton-based trick planned."

"And I guess I'll just go about my day." Said Zooey, "Do keep me updated though, this is interesting!"

"Will do!" Replied Tails, as everyone made their way out of the Ruin.

* * *

After exiting the Ruin, Zooey and Fastidious went back to town. Sonic and Tails, decided to find and confront Eggman while Amy, Sticks, and Knuckles continued searching for clues around the Ruin.

Finding Eggman proved to be a bit more time consuming than desired. After a quick flight to Eggman's lair, they were told he was in town. So one back and forth trip of plane fuel wasted later, Sonic and Tails headed through the main streets of the village to find Eggman. The Village mostly consisted of wooden huts much like Tails and Amy's houses, with a street dedicated to small store fronts.

After a few more moments, Sonic and Tails spotted Dr. Eggman near the Meh-Burger, an outdoor restaurant in town. They noticed Eggman had a notebook out as he attempted to solicit passerby's into answering his survey questions. His efforts didn't seem very fruitful, as every villager turned a blind eye as they hurried their pace by him.

"Care to improve Halloween? Just answer a few questions about your deepest personal fears-" Said Eggman, as the Cow he directed the question at practically ran away, "Fine! I'll just mark fear of surveys!"

"What are you doing Egghead?" Said Sonic as he and Tails walked up.

"I'm trying to gather data so I can improve Halloween for the village." Said Eggman, "I'm sure everyone desires scarier attractions! Especially considering how boring things were last year."

"Yeah, and I'll bet you expect them to pay an awful lot of money for it." Said Sonic.

Eggman's posture grew defensive, but he put his hand to his chin for a moment, before responding, "What's it to you! I'm not planning anything evil, just horrifying enough to be the scariest thing in this village for years!"

Sonic scoffed, "You should leave schemes like that to Barker, his oddly timed haunted house did scare you after all."

Eggman's face grew red as he was reminded of being incredibly frightened by fake ghosts. "Just take my survey or leave me alone, Hedgehog!"

"Hold on, we have some questions for you!" Interjected Tails, "Did you go back to the Ruin you excavated last night?"

Eggman raised his eyebrow and said, "No, it was raining."

Tails sighed lightly at this response, but Sonic wasn't fully convinced as he said, "What did you want in their anyway?"

"When I dug it up? I wanted to be left to my work." With a moment of scrutinized silence, Eggman continued, "But, I did assume there was something of value in there, of which I'm sure you all took for yourselves."

Tails rubbed his arm and said, "You could say that."

"What?" Asked Eggman as he stopped glaring at Sonic long enough to notice Tails' wound, "What happened to you fox boy?"

"Worksite hazard." Replied Tails.

"Look," Said Eggman, "If we're all just gonna be vague with each other, I don't think this conversation is going anywhere for either of us."

Sonic grumbled and said, "Fine, let's go Tails."

* * *

After that useless confrontation with Eggman, the two returned to Tails' Workshop. Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks returned shortly after, and started making plans with Sonic. Tails however, spent some time running his recently assembled chemical analysis machine on the small sample of purple liquid from the Altar. Tails cycled between typing on a computer interface, and drawing up some new schematics on a table nearby.

Everyone else sat in front of a chalkboard, of which Amy had just finished writing a bullet point list of everything the group knew. Listed so far was that the figure appeared to wear a brown cloak when breaking into Tails' Workshop, but appeared to be wolf-like monster when seen clearly. Also listed was the location of the Ruin, the presence of a ritualistic looking Altar/trap, the fact that someone ransacked a grave inside, and the fact that Dr. Eggman dug the ruin up in the first place.

"Okay, so did I miss anything?" Asked Amy.

"Tails almost broke his arm in a skulls jaws." Answered Knuckles.

"Oh yeah!" Replied Amy as she marked that point, "Well, that's what we know so far, so what's our next step?"

"Kicking the butt of whoever is messing about." Said Sonic.

Tails audibly lauded himself from his work area, and he appeared to have finished the notes he was working on. Running over to the chalkboard next to Amy with a grin, Tails said, "There's a chance that person or monster, will return tonight. So, I have a plan for catching and interrogating them!"

"Okay, what'dya got?" Asked Sonic.

"Well, I'll modify one of my older inventions!" Said Tails as he placed a blue sheet of loose battle plans on the chalkboard, "If we can set up an ambush, I can use my shield generator to hold them in place while an electric tazing mechanism subdues them!"

"You mean that shield bubble thing you built to protect the village?" Asked Sonic.

"Yes! I'll modify the size of the shield to a reasonable diameter, and I think I can attach an electric tazing mechanism to it! I just need to be close enough to calibrate the strength of the electric charge so we don't kill them."

"Got electricity on the mind I see." Commented Amy as she thought about Tails' plan. Seeing Tails bouncing with excitement at this plan he just concocted, Amy figured there might be some logistical holes in the scheme. "So how are we going to know where to set up the ambush anyway?"

"That the difficult part." Replied Tails, calming down a bit, "We know a few places where they've already been, but there's no telling if they will return."

"I can help with that!" Said Sticks, "While you and Sonic were chatting' up Eggman, I was studying the tracks that they left behind!"

Tails' eyes widened as he slapped his forehead, "Why didn't I think to check for tracks?! Did you find out where they went?"

"No, the rain erased them after a short distance." Answered Sticks, "But I memorized their scent!"

"Uh, Okay." Said Tails, "So you can find the person or creature, and we can set up the trap ahead of them!"

"I can chase them in the direction of the trap." Suggested Sonic, "Amy and Knuckles can flank them to make sure I don't lose them again."

"Sounds like a solid plan to me." Said Amy, "You got that Knuckles?"

Knuckles replied with a light snore, as it appeared he fell asleep shortly after Tails started talking.

"Knuckles! Wake up!" Yelled Amy.

"What?!" Yelled Knuckles as he jumped awake, "What's going on?"

"I'll fill you in later," Said Amy, "Tails, you get to work on your device. The rest of us should get ready for this evening."

"I still need to eat anyway," Said Sonic "So I'll meet you all back here near sunset."

Shortly after everyone else left the Workshop, Tails pulled a yellow metal box with a black base from storage. Tails put this shield dome emitting device on a workbench and looked over it's old schematics. Before he started to modify the device, a beeping sound emanated from the chemical analysis machine. Running over with mild excitement, Tails saw that all possible analytical functions had completed and the computer was ready to produce a report.

"Great!" Said Tails to himself like a lonely hermit fox, "I wonder what kind of liquid would have been preserved for so long."

Tails turned his head around the room, and remembered that everyone had already left. He shrugged and pressed a few keys on the machine, making it display the resulting data on its monitor. While the amount of liquid Tails recovered was a really small sample, the machine managed to isolate some key components in it. Few other details were deduced, as the sample was used up before more tests could be run.

"Whoa." Said Tails as he read the report, "Blood…?"

Tails cycled through some more data, which concurred with the statement that there was blood in the liquid. Was it his? Tails did get his arm pierced in there, could he have contaminated the sample? That couldn't be the case. Tails had recovered the sample he just tested from Sticks' pole staff, of which was dipped in the liquid before Tails foolishly stuck his arm in it. While the presence of blood was ominous already, what was stranger is that the blood cells weren't even decomposed or coagulated.

With that result, Tails continued to ponder ways the sample could have been contaminated. The tests he had just ran used up the small sample he'd recovered, and he had no way of finding more to run dna tests. Without dna testing to figure out what kind of creature the blood came from, Tails had no way of knowing when it got in there. Realising this, he decided to read the other chemicals that the machine detected.

A notable portion of the liquid was simply marked as not-discernable, which made sense as the sample size limiting the number of possible tests. Other than blood, the machine found water too. Also notable was that a portion of the unidentified liquid tested to be highly reactive to electric charge. Aside from that information and other loose extrapolations, Tails couldn't figure out much more about the properties of the liquid.

"Well, that's a dead end." Said Tails, still alone, what a creep.

After saving the data, Tails returned to the shield dome generator and started to work on his planned modifications. This feet of mechanical and electrical engineering came more naturally to Tails than his chemistry. Within an hour, he had modified it's original shield-dome emitting diameter, and tested it to be eleven and a half yards. Tails then installed a computer component in place of the activation button, and connected it remotely to his wrist communicator device.

Afterwards came a more difficult challenge, connecting an electric tazing mechanism to the shield dome generator and calibrating it to only zap everything inside of the dome. Going to the drawing board, Tails sketched a design that should attach around the box of the shield generator without interfering with its base function. He then scrapped most of that design and drew up one that would attach around the box without interfering in the shield generation, now being twenty-three percent lighter. In theory atleast.

Confident with this design, Tails assembled the necessary materials at a workbench, and put on a protective welding helmet and apron. With some light assembly of some electrical components involving some cutting and soldering, Tails had all the parts he needed. All that was left was assembly. Preparing his welding helmet, Tails moved on to welding out a metal frame to fit around the electrical components.

After a few hours of varying work, Tails had finished the electric taser extension for the shield generator. After applying one quick coat of yellow paint, he screwed it to the box. He then connected the activation switch for the taser mechanism to his wrist communicator device. Looking over his completed project, Tails smiled. It was time for the fun part, testing.

Tails carried the shield dome generator outside and into a wide clearing of grass, a safe spot for testing. He needed to be working less recklessly with his devices after all. After placing it on the ground, he ran back about fourteen yards, eyeballed the distance he was from it, and stepped back to fifteen yards. Tails grinned to himself for being so prudent in his safety precautions.

Wearing a silly grin in excitement, Tails pressed correlating buttons on his communicator. With a click sound from the box followed by whirring, blue energy shot into the sky before cycling down to the ground in a dome shape. A blue, transparent hemisphere-shaped wall of energy now sat in front of Tails. Its diameter was about eleven and three-quarter yards. Content with this result, Tails pressed another button on his communicator. After a moment, the area within the dome flashed with bright, arcing electricity.

Tails jumped and yelped In the moment that the electricity filled with area in the dome. Quickly bashing the button on his communicator again, Tails deactivated the electricity. Considering that much energy would probably kill anything inside, Tails changed the power calibration with his wrist communicator. After a few seconds, Tails braced himself and activated the electricity again. Now, the electricity arched around inside the dome with fewer and thinner arcs. Relieved that the result wasn't nearly as alarming this time, Tails observed the power level to be survivable now.

All in all, It appeared Tails' shield dome device was finished and ready for use with some daylight to spare. Turning off the shield, Tails watched as a cloud of smoke was released and puffed into the sky. The first test of the electricity fried and charred all of the grass in the dome area. Though now It was clear that it stayed inside the shield dome.

Picking up the shield dome generator and walking back toward the workshop, Tails looked at the sky and saw it now filed with hues of orange, red, and blue. Sunset was nearing. His eyes drifted to the waxing moon, of which was dimly visible on the horizon. That is when his stomach's protest for food hit him with a growl, distracting his gaze. Having been working most of the day, Tails realized he needed to eat food at some point. Tails felt a chill shoot across his body as he approached the Workshop, of which didn't completely subside.

After placing his Shield-Trap on a workbench, Tails pressed the radio button on his communicator. "Sonic, if your near the Meh Burger, can you grab me a meal or two?"

Sonic's response came seconds afterward as a knock on Tails' door. Opening the door revealed Sonic holding two brown fast-food bags.

"Delivery for a Mr. Miles Prower?" Said Sonic in a stereotypical fast food service voice.

"Hahaha!" Tails laughed before grabbing a bag, "Thanks! You were nearby?"

"No, I was at my house." Answered Sonic, "Just thought I'd put in some extra legwork and do you a favor."

"Hehe, okay." Said Tails, "So is everyone ready for tonight?"

"Yeah, but Sticks said she's going to wait near the ruin at about sundown. She got suspicious about something."

"Sundown is about now, Sonic."

"Oh yeah! But I'm usually pretty fast, so I won't worry about it."

Tails sat down and starting to eat a burger, of which tasted better than usual. While chewing, Tails gestured loosely at the shield-generating yellow box contraption with a tazing feature he built. "I got my Shield Trap done, and tested it." He said before taking another bite of burger.

"Cool, so if we find the guy, how are you going to use it?" Asked Sonic as he sat the other brown bag on the workbench.

Tails scratched his left arm for a second as he finished chewing, "Uhm, I was going to fly ahead of them, and drop it."

"Simple enough."

Tails' brow furrowed defensively, "Assembling it wasn't so simple, I've just used up all of my ingenious planning skills building this thing in the first place." Said Tails, before stuffing the last bit of burger in his mouth.

"I'm sure." Replied Sonic with a smirk, "Either way, I'm confident you'll come through."

"Thanks."

The sky outside had already dimmed further, as the sun lowered behind the horizon. Tails felt chilly has he glanced at the scene and he raised an eyebrow as he noticed. Rubbing his head, Tails was now worrying he was developing a fever. "Hmm, hopefully I don't get too sick tonight."

"You're feeling sick?" Asked Sonic.

Thinking about how the ache in his arm seemed to change from a bruised ache, to a general muscle ache spreading through his body, Tails figured the answer was yes. "Probably, maybe a fever, but I feel fine enough to go with you guys tonight."

"Alright, well, I'm going to head to the Ruin with Amy and Knuckles." Said Sonic, "Call us if you don't think you'll make it."

Tails glared in a flippant manner, "I'll be fine Sonic. Just give me a minute and I'll be right out."

"Okay, see you there then!" Said Sonic, "Oh, and you owe me fifty for the delivery tip."

"Get outta here!"

"Bye Tails!"

After Tails finished the rest of his meal, which didn't fill him completely, he prepared to head out. Putting the Shield Trap in a shoulder bag, Tails walked out of his workshop and saw the dwindling sunset. He noticed the chilly feeling in his skin was more prevalent now, to the point that he legitimately could not tell if it was that cold outside. Rubbing his head to regain his focus, Tails started walking out to the direction of the Ruin, allowing his mind to wander as he watched the colors of the sun fade from the sky.

After a few moments, Tails rubbed his forehead absentmindedly, and was surprised to find he was sweating quite profusely. This evidence led Tails to be almost sure he was coming down with a fever. Tails stopped for a bit and contemplated going on the mission, while wondering how he might've gotten sick. He rubbed his left arm for a second, before looking at it, realizing how he probably got sick.

A beep came from Tails' wrist communicator, so he pressed the button and heard Amy's voice say, "Tails, we're all set up here near the Ruin. Are you on your way?"

Tails held his wrist up to his face and tried to talk, but found that his voice cracked illegibly. After a cough to clear his throat, Tails said, "Sorry, I am on my way. Should be there in a few minutes."

"Are you okay? That didn't sound like a healthy cough." Said Amy

"I'm fine enough," replied Tails, "Just clearing my throat."

"Okay, we'll see you in a bit then."

Shaking his head and rubbing his neck, Tails wondered how bad his fever actually was. Even if all he felt were chills and light muscle aches, Tails worried he'd get worse. While thinking, one of his tails twitched and hit the sand, causing Tails to stop. After a moment of a scrutinized stare at his own appendage, Tails shook his head and continued walking forward.

Eyes wandering up, Tails noticed that most of the sky had turned dark and many stars became visible. The path ahead of him was illuminated more by the moonlight than the sun now. Speaking of the moon, sitting up there with it's distracting yellow tint, it appeared almost full. Though Tails knew the actual full moon was tomorrow night. Tails' pace slowed a bit as watched the moon, before he almost tripped on his other tail. With a moment of realignment, Tails glared back at his rear appendages.

As he balanced himself, Tails noticed his legs were shivering, as were his arms. He knew there was no way it was that cold out. Tails also noticed a tight pain in his chest, and felt his heartbeat racing. Despite these symptoms, Tails figured he should at least bring Sonic the Shield Trap before resting. Shaking his head, Tails continued forward in a faster, albeit shakier pace.

After a moment of walking, Tails' gaze wandered back up to the sky as he thought to himself. His blue eyes gawked at the glowing moon again, scrutinizing it for a reason as to why it held his attention.

Tails' pace steadily slowed, his body shivering. The sounds of the ocean started to muffle and fade as his own heartbeat grew louder. The communicator on his wrist started beeping, but Tails kept shuffling forward, eyes locked on the moon. I should, answer that, he thought as his vision refused to part from the moon. Why, aren't I? Unbeknownst to Tails, the color of his irises started to shift, and turn a dark shade of purple. Tails' feet kept dragging forward along the ground forward automatically.

With the wobbly nature of Tails' pace, the bag holding the Shield Trap fell from his shoulder and landed on his right foot. Gaze with the moon broken, Tails barely noticed he had fallen. The communicator continued beeping loudly, but it sounded far away, thumping heartbeat drowning out the world. His vision blurred, as he struggled to make out where he was, or what he was doing. Looking up one more time, Tails' vision tunneled, as all he could make out was the yellow tinted light of the moon.

Elsewhere, next to the pit of the Ruin, Sonic tapped his foot impatiently. Eyes locked on his wrist communicator of which continued to page Tails. Sonic grumbled audibly. From nearby, Amy gave a worried look in his direction.

"Maybe he's almost here." Suggested Knuckles.

"I don't know, but he'd pick up anyway." Said Sonic, "I'm gonna look for him."

"Hold on!" Said Sticks in a hushed tone, "You can't leave yet, the monster could show up any moment!"

As Sonic was about to respond, all four of them jumped at the sound of a howl. They froze as the echoing howl carried on, sounding alarmingly close.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

It took me longer to do this chapter than I would've hoped. Not to mention it is longer, word wise, than I expected, despite not even reaching all of the night scenes I planned.

I have also realized that at the pace I write, this story will be five(six(seven)) chapters long, not four.

Please do comment and tell me any pf your thoughts on the story so far. I desire some criticism, as this is my first foray into fan fiction writing in many years. As I have most of the story outlined and planned out in notes already, I am also interested in speculation, to see if my foreshadowing skill are up to snuff.

Thank you for your time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3, Night of Terrifying Shenanigans**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

A frightening howl carried across the area, and everyone froze in place. Sticks stared toward the direction the howl emanated from, a portion of woods in the general direction of the beach. Amy jumped behind a nearby tree in response, raising her hammer readily. Knuckles had already dug himself into a hole prepared to jump from it like a trench. Sonic and Sticks had stood out in the open, both minds racing with concerning thoughts. The sound ceased suddenly, leaving the group wondering where exactly it came from.

"What the heck was that?!" Said Sonic.

"That definitely sounds like a monster," said Sticks, "Did it howl like that when you saw it?"

"No, but It didn't stick around for long." Replied Sonic, "I'd bet it's the same one."

Sticks had lowered to the ground on all fours as Sonic talked, creeping up to the trees while sniffing the air. Everyone was used to this primitive but effective tactic, so they refrained from judging her.

"Is it coming this way?" Asked Amy.

Sticks appeared to be contemplating, "Hmm, I don't smell anything like the tracks anywhe-" she stopped suddenly as her head shot up in surprise, "Hold on!"

Turning toward the side of the forest going inland, Sticks raised her ear and listened closely. Seeing this reaction, Sonic ducked behind a large leafed bush. Sticks' ear twitched, and she immediately signed with her hands, " _get down!"_ Shortly afterward, everyone else heard a movement in brush. Knuckles ducked into his hole, while Amy repositioned and held her hammer. Sonic watched the woods closely, then saw an obscured movement followed by shaking foliage.

The obscured figure bolted through the trees, audibly approaching their location. As Sonic and the others watched the movement, it stopped near the edge of the excavation pit. Turning his head carefully, Sonic caught a glimpse of a large figure, hidden just short of the moonlight. Its' head turned back and forth, apparently scanning the area of the ruin. It started sniffing loudly, making Sonic worry it might notice them. With a loud snort, the figure shifted and disappeared back into the forest.

Sonic's eyes met with Sticks' for a moment, he could see her focus on the situation at hand. A few moments passed while Sonic held his tongue and Sticks' eyes followed the movement in the brush.

"Okay, it's moved far enough away," said Sticks, inciting a collective sigh from everyone else, "We should move quickly or we'll lose track of it."

"Hold on!" Said Sonic, "Tails still hasn't shown up or answered his communicator, something's up."

"Yeah, that is concerning," said Amy, "Not to mention he has the trap we need."

"We can probably take that guy without it." Said Knuckles, lifting himself from his hole.

Sticks grumbled illegibly for a moment as she focused on the forest, then said, "Okay, find Tails. I'll take Amy and Knuckles after that thing."

"You can call us when you find him," said Amy, "Then we can intersect paths and use the trap."

"Okay, I shouldn't take long!" Said Sonic.

With verbal confirmation of their plan, Sonic ran to the beach at high speed. In the next second he veered toward Tails' House and Workshop, disappearing in a blue blur. Sticks went into the forest, keeping a good distance behind the Figure. Amy and Knuckles stayed further behind Stick's as they followed in an effort to avoid being spotted.

* * *

The night had become very confusing for Tails. He could tell something had _changed_ , but not what.

Tails had just finished screaming at the bright yellow-tinted orb in the sky, which seemed like the most logical thing to do at that time. After a moment of staring at the bright orb waiting for a response, he noticed an obnoxious beeping sound. He looked down at the beeping noise maker that held tightly onto his wrist and promptly threw it across the beach. What was such a thing doing there anyway? With a shake of his head, Tails tried to mentally recuperate.

One thing of note was the soreness in his whole body. It felt like he'd just recovered from falling out of the sky. As he blinked his eyes and looked around, strangely familiar debris became visible across the sand. Nearby were some belt straps, as well as scraps of shredded shoes and gloves. He then noticed and was immediately disgruntled by something clinging tightly to his head. His front limbs moved to scratch at it in an uncoordinated manner. After much effort in shaking his head and clawing at the object, a leather strap of goggles fell from his head onto the sand.

Now free of distractions, Tails groaned and looked around anxiously. Something was off, his heart was racing and he felt the need to do something. He looked down at all of his limbs, they seemed completely new to him. This train of thought was suddenly interrupted by the cold touch of water meeting his two tails. He jumped up and ran in an unwieldy manner before tripping over a metal box and falling forward. When he turned around, all he saw was the ocean. His tails shook off the water as the frustration in his mind grew.

Eyes and ears now scanning the entire periphery, Tails tried to figure out what it was he needed to do. With a rumble from his stomach, he had a pretty good guess. Within a few moments and multiple attempts at walking with his cumbersome limbs, Tails got into a reasonably fast four-legged trot. He eagerly headed towards wherever he figured there might be food.

Moonlight illuminating the large, dark brown, ragged furred, sharp clawed, purple eyed lycanthropic fox with big sharp jaws, anyone else would've noticed that Tails had changed an _awful_ lot.

* * *

In the sky above the ocean, Dr. Eggman flew the iconic eggmobile toward the Village under the cover of night. At least it would be under the cover of night if the moonlight didn't reflect off the metal vehicle, illuminating it like a disco ball. In small side pods protruding out on both sides of the eggmobile sat Orbot and Cubot. On the bottom of the vehicle, attached by a magnetic clamp, was a cloaked figure with visible robotic hands, Dreamcaster.

"What a lovely night for an evil scheme!" Said Orbot.

"I dunno, almost everyone will be in bed," said Cubot, "So there won't be anybody to appreciate our evil work."

"That's all part of _my_ plan!" Said Eggman, "I'll take us in near the village, and then we'll stealthily head to the TV station, like professionals!"

"Ah, so we're doing the same thing we did last time you built Dreamcaster." Said Orbot.

Eggman huffed, mentally offended by the comment. Yet he was aware that Orbot was only vocalizing observations. "It's not exactly the same, we're going to start broadcasting Dreamcasters hypnotic influence at a completely different hour!"

"Hah!" Commented Cubot while he finished processing his next line of dialogue, "Sonic probably won't expect us to do the same thing twice!"

Eggman took his eyes off of his flight path to glare at Cubot, but his expression shifted to contemplation. "We already established this isn't about being the same! How long were you just processing your dialogue instead of listening?"

"Probably too long..." Said Cubot as he looked down.

Eggman looked ahead again before commenting, "Probably a glitch, I'll have that checked out."

After a few more short minutes, the eggmobile and its passengers hovered toward a clearing near the edge of the village. Eggman pulled the eggmobile to a stop while hovering in the air. With the press of a button, the magnetic clamp released and Dreamcaster was activated. The cloaked, red-eyed robot jerked it's head up, and hovered as it lowered to the ground with grace. Eggman then pulled the eggmobile forward a bit, landing it in as obscured an area as he could find.

After getting out with Orbot and Cubot, Eggman approached Dreamcaster as it floated ominously. He had to admit he was mildly intimidated by this robot, as its red eyes stared blankly at him. Eggman knew Dreamcaster was waiting for an order as it stared at him. Yet, a small part of him feared it was mentally judging him, staring into his very soul.

"Man, this guy's a creep!" Said Cubot.

Eggman stood with as confident a posture as he could muster, "Dreamcaster is just waiting for orders, of which I will give now!"

A deep and disconcertingly calming voice emanated from Dreamcaster, "Indeed, what shall we broadcast tonight, Sir?"

Orbot noticed some movement in his periphery and turned away from the others, looking around the proximity. Though he didn't see anything suspicious.

"We're going to operate with subtly induced phobias!" Said Eggman loudly.

"Oh yeah, what did you decide to make everyone fear?" Asked Cubot.

"I'm going to make them fear mandatory surveys!" Said Eggman as he raised his arms dramatically, "Then, I will subjugate everyone by punishing those who oppose me with surveys that they are compelled to complete, despite it being utter torture!"

"Hmm," Spoke Dreamcaster as it processed its ability to induce such a fear, "In two nights of indoctrination, that future will be reality."

Orbot's audio sensor picked up the movement of brush, and he turned to look around again. Now suspicious, he floated forward a bit and kept watching out into the trees.

"That doesn't seem like a particularly scary thing, Boss." Commented Cubot.

"I doesn't matter how scary it seems!" Retorted Eggman, "In two days Halloween night, surveys might as well be the most terrifying monster ever known to this island!"

"Uhm, boss." Said Orbot.

"What are you doing?" Asked Eggman as he looked over at Orbot, "We're about to head in."

Dreamcaster had turned to look a Orbot as well, but its gaze shifted past him. It then floated in front of Eggman, raising its arms readily.

"Huh?" Muttered Eggman as he watched Dreamcaster. As he was about to question its movement, Eggman looked to where Orbot and Dreamcaster were staring.

A few yards away, partially hidden behind a tree, was the front of some sort of large, brown furred, fox-like creature. It's purple eyes met Eggman's own eyes, accentuating the horrible glare it gave him. The visible posture of the Creature suggested it was ready to run or fight, its ears flicking anxiously. Dreamcaster continued past Orbot now, raising its arms out, preparing for a spook vs spook battle.

"You want to leave, of your own free will." Spoke Dreamcaster's smooth voice.

"What, is that?" Asked Cubot.

Eggman stood frozen still as his mind raced. He then remember his insecurities about appearing weak in front of his robots, and realigned his posture. _There's no way a creature like that exists here,_ He realized, _I'd have seen it._

"Barker, is this one of your Halloween tricks? An animatronic fox-monster, really?" Said Eggman loudly at the Creature.

The eyes of the Creature stayed locked on Eggman's eyes, weakening his resolve in that assertion. Ears flat, the Creature stepped forward and stood up on its hind legs, surprising Eggman with its height. A growl left its toothy maw as it anxiously flicked its tail, no, two tails. Clearly seeing the full body of this intimidating Creature, Eggman doubted it was fake. The ensuing mental panic prevented him from pondering about the it's extra tail.

"Erm," Stuttered Eggman, "Dreamcaster, do something!"

Dreamcaster responded by shrieking a metallic roar as it threw off it's cloak. Revealed now was It's metal skeleton-like body and skull like head, hovering just above the ground. Raising it's large sharp-fingered metal hands, Dreamcaster flew at the Creature ahead of it. Whilst Dreamcaster charged, Orbot, Cubot, and Eggman backed up cautiously.

With the shrieking robot flying at it, The Creature jumped back a pace in apparent surprise, before lowering down on all four and baring its teeth. As Dreamcaster approached within mere feet, the Creature jumped into the air with the force of its legs and a boost from it's tails. Dreamcaster fumbled and stopped as it floated under the airborne Creature. With just enough time for Dreamcaster to gaze up with it's red eyes, the Creature landed on it, jaw clamping down on the head of the skeletal robot.

Eggman stepped back a few more feet now as he watched Dreamcaster get helplessly flailed around by the Creature. Dreamcaster's arms thrashed around and attempted to attack at the Creature to no avail. With each jerking motion and the clamping jaws of the Creature, Dreamcaster's wiring from its head to its body tore and loosened. With one more flailing turn, Dreamcaster's body bashed into the nearby tree. The robotic body fell to the ground, arms twitching aimlessly as sparks flew from the neck. Dreamcaster's red eyes faded, as its head sat motionless in the jaws of the horrifying purple-eyed Monster.

"AAAAAHHH!" Screamed Eggman as he pushed Orbot and Cubot to the sides and ran to the eggmobile.

Orbot and Cubot looked back at the Monster to see it pacing toward them, Dreamcasters head still in its jaws. Orbot floated backwards as the Monster paced forward, before turning and going at full speed after Eggman. Cubot, however, stayed in place for a moment as he stared.

"Cubot, come on!" Yelled Orbot as loud as his speaker was able.

"We're leaving?" Replied Cubot, "Hold on, I'llgrab Dreamcaster."

Orbot responded by slapping his hands against his head with a metal thunk. Eggman, now standing in the eggmobile, pressed a few buttons frantically. The eggmobile hummed to live and started hovering.

"Hurry up you moro-!" Eggman then processed what Cubot said, "NO, LEAVE IT!"

Cubot stopped, his arms outstretched to grab the head of Dreamcaster from the Monster's maw, "What? Oh, oka-"

A swift swipe of a claw struck Cubot in the head, sending him flying back toward Eggman and Orbot. Eggman gave an illegible squeak and immediately thrusted the Eggmobile up into the air. Orbot however, swiftly grabbed Cubot, and pulled him away without looking back. Eggman was about to fly away without the robots in fear, but he saw that the Monster hadn't advanced further now. Looking closely, it's low posture was more defensive that aggressive.

Lowering the eggmobile quickly while watching the Monster, Eggman let Orbot enough time to throw Cubot into a pod. Seconds later, Orbot jumped in the other side.

"What are you waiting for?!" Asked Orbot immediately.

Eggman lifting the vehicle far into the air in response, but kept watching the Monster, reason shifting from fear to curiosity. The Monster's posture appeared anxious, yet, maybe it was timid? As it flicked its two tails in quick succession, Eggman's heart skipped a beat. There were remnants of bandages attached to the Monster's left forearm.

"Oh, my, God." Muttered Eggman quietly, before shaking his head and flying the eggmobile away as fast a possible.

On the ground, Tails breathed a sigh a relief. He dropped the hard object from his mouth, letting it fall to the grass. He wasn't quite sure what happened, but Tails knew seeing that person made him angry. Aside from him, being near people was something he desperately wanted to avoid. Though he wasn't quite sure _why_.

* * *

Sonic's night had just been filled with a massive amount of dread. He stood, legs shaking, looking down at the mess of Tails' belt straps, shoes, and other such gear strewn over the beach.

"I-, I don't know what happened Amy!" Said Sonic to his wrist communicator, holding back a flood of emotions, "I don't see blood, but all his gear, h-his goggles,-"

"Sonic! Listen to me!" Said Amy, "Were going to find him, we have to focus on that now, alright?"

Sonic still felt dread as she said that, but was more so filled with determination. "Okay, But can you tell... can you see if that thing has him?"

Amy paused for a moment as Sonic heard muffled talking, "Sticks is pretty sure it doesn't. We know it didn't have Tails with it when it first showed up, either."

The listing of these facts was not helping Sonic much, as he paced anxiously back a forth. He felt like he should be running as fast as possible to find Tails, but he knew he had to know where to look.

"Did you find the trap Tails made?" Asked Amy shortly after the last line.

"Uh, yeah, I have it here." Sonic ran over and knelt next to a bag containing the yellow Shield Trap, "It wasn't on when I got here, but I think," he paused to spin the shield generator around and examine it, "I think it's not broken."

"That is good." Reassured Amy, "It's probably our best bet of catching the person we're following, and finding out what they know."

"Yeah, yeah." Replied Sonic.

Looking around, Sonic saw a piece of material strewn farther from the rest of Tails' gear. With a quick run over, he saw Tails' wrist communicator and picked it up immediately. The small gadget looked intact, aside from some stretch marks on the wrist strap. Seeing this gadget hear, Sonic knew Tails probably couldn't call them, if he was in any condition to call.

"Sonic, You should look for tracks or clues to where he might've been taken." Suggested Amy's voice from his own wrist communicator.

"I found his communicator further from the rest of his stuff," Said Sonic.

"Okay, Check for any kind of tracks around there." Replied Amy.

Taking a deep breath, Sonic activated the lighting on his uniform so he could see the beach better. After just a few quick laps around the area, he skidded to a stop, seeing large paw prints gouged into the sand. Looking ahead, they continued unevenly in the general direction of the town.

"Amy, there's tracks leading to the town, not the Ruin!" Said Sonic.

"Okay, there might be someone else involved then... Follow it as far as you can, We'll keep following this one."

"Alright, check in with me soon, okay?"

"Will do. Stay safe Sonic." Confirmed Amy.

Sonic turned off the communicator, and quickly grabbed Tails' belt and goggles. Sonic put the shield generator back in it's bag, and stuffed Tails's other recovered gear in on top of it. Throwing the bag strap over his neck, Sonic started running along the visible tracks, speeding along with focused determination. A thought nagged at Sonic as he ran. He shouldn't found this sight sooner, or maybe stuck with Tails earlier.

Shaking his head, Sonic dismissed those thoughts. He needed to focus on finding Tails, not moping.

* * *

Back in the village, only a few citizens strolled through the streets. Stores closed for the night and citizens returned to their homes. Tails hid between wooden buildings, watching the streets closely. His ears picked up movement in some areas nearby. Tails was at a loss for what he should do now, only the immense hunger for food motivating him. He'd come into town expecting to find food for some reason, but so far Tails had just nervously hid in the shadows. Glancing up at the bright orb in the sky, of which was now more white than yellow, Tails tried to remember anything useful.

After moving on, trailing a street from the shadows, Tails stopped as he heard someone nearby. He quickly jumped behind a building, nervously avoiding sight. His ears listened intently to the footsteps moving down the street nearby. His nose then twitched as it noticed a familiar scent. Moving his head to glance out, Tails' gaze locked onto the figure. An aqua blue, buck-toothed, rodent wearing a lavender shirt walked by, posture low and exhausted. For some reason, seeing this person reminded Tails of a somewhere he could get food.

The figure, who wore a name tag that said 'Dave', turned his eyes at the broad direction of Tails. Tails immediately reeled his head back and crouched behind the building.

"What was that?" Said Dave, "Who's there?"

Tails stayed still for a moment. When he heard the footsteps approaching him, he knew he had to fight or flee. Feeling very anxious from being near so many people in the first place, Tails turned and ran fast on all fours past multiple buildings. Tails stumbled for a moment as he skidded to a stop, hiding behind a tree. A glance backwards revealed that no one pursued him. With a sniff in the air, Tails' ears perked up, and he quickly followed the scent.

Looking up, Tails saw he was right next to the outdoor restaurant Meh Burger. It was now unoccupied as chairs sat upside down on top of tables and the lights were all off. However, all Tails cared about was that there was food here. Scanning the proximity, Tails saw no one around, and quickly ran to the cookline counters, diving behind them. Now under the cover of the wooden counters, Tails sniffed around the cookline of this establishment. He stuffed his face into a cooling yet still warm charbroiler, but found nothing.

With a turn of his head, he saw a large fridge unit hidden in the counters. Tails immediately started to claw at the metal lid, trying to find a way in. After scratching the fridge surface up, Tails eventually lifted the lid with a pushing motion. To his gratification, he saw many thaw, refrigerated patties, as well as other loose ingredients. At that point, Tails kind of lost track of himself, more so than he already had.

After a little while, though Tails hadn't yet noticed, Dave had started walking back to the Meh Burger from the street. While trudging along, He muttered, "Oh yeah, It's _so important_ I remember to lock the fridge! Who would even try to rob _our_ ingredients?"

Dave shook his head as he approached the outdoor dining area of the Meh Burger. With a lazy glance up, he stopped in place. Staring at the large figure behind the counters, Dave could hear the sound of eating.

"Uh," Muttered Dave, as he realized the figure was bigger and more wild than an average person, "Hey! Get, get out of there, you…!"

The Creature's ears flicked, and it's head shot up, staring at Dave with dark purple eyes. It immediately bared its fangs and lowered its ears, raw patty meat hanging from its teeth. Dave stood still in place, as he tried to remember what company protocol was for situations like this.

"Uh, please leave the, er, employee only area… sir…"

It responded with a growl as it raised its clawed arms on top of the counter. Dave started walking backward now, raising his hands in the air. "You know what, I'll just put the damages on tab for you in the morning!"

With that, Dave turned around, and ran as fast as his lanky, nonathletic, exhausted legs could go. Tails stayed put, watching intently as Dave fled, seeing Dave pass by another person.

"Hey, what's going on?!" Asked Zooey the fox as Dave ran by.

"Meh Burger is closed come back tomorrow!" He yelled rapidly while continuing to run.

Tails groaned disconcertingly at the sight of a familiar person. He saw Zooey turn and look in his direction, her eyes widening. After a moment, she walked closer at a careful pace. She came to a halt when Tails shifted back behind the counter. Zooey gave a scrutinizing stare his direction as she stood still. This expression made Tails more nervous, as he dreaded the thought of being recognized for some reason. He bashfully prowled behind the counter, slowly trying to evade her sight.

"Okay, if you're some Halloween prankster with a convincing costume," said Zooey, as she pulled a yellow handheld gadget from the back of her dress, "I'm armed!"

Zooey pressed a button, activating visible electric arcs on the end of the yellow handheld taser. Tails immediately recognized the device and jumped back, pressing against the side of the charbroiler. He knew he had to avoid this person, and he knew he had to get away from that thing in her hands.

"So, I'd suggest not vandalizing peoples stuff! Especially before Halloween's even started." Said Zooey.

Tails gave an involuntary nod, and immediately turned around to run out the back of Meh Burger. He had enough food anyway, and was too riddled with anxiety to deal with people anymore.

Out of Tails' sight, Zooey held her defensive pose as the Creature she saw left her view. After a few moments of holding the pose, Zooey sighed heavily, and dropped to her knees, arms shaking. "How, the heck, do they do this hero thing?!"

* * *

Sonic skidded to a stop, sending wet grass into the air. He looked around his area desperately, running back and forth from the last track of prints in the sand. The paw prints stopped being visible at the end of the beach and sand, much to Sonic's chagrin. He stopped again, tapping his foot restlessly as he activated his wrist communicator.

"Amy, I'm at a dead end nearly a kilometer from the Village, where are you?"

A moment passed as Sonic waited for a response, "We've lost sight of them, but Sticks is still following their scent, I guess." Amy responded in a hushed tone, "We're actually about a kilometer northeast of the village, But we might've been spotted."

Sonic heard a more distant voice, as Knuckles said "And It's not my fault!"

"Okay, okay. No sign of Tails?" Asked Sonic, even though he knew the answer.

"I'm sorry Sonic, but without any more leads… I think you should meet up with us before we lose the one we're following."

"No Amy, maybe he's in the Village somewhere!" Said Sonic, "There has to be a way to find him!"

"Sonic, this is our best chance to get answers!" Chastised Amy, "If we don't, we'll keep looking until we find him! I promise."

Sonic grumbled to himself mentally, but shook his head to avoid falling into dread, "Okay Amy, I head over-"

"Hold on Sonic!" interrupted Amy.

Sonic raised his eyebrow, but soon heard a muffled howl through the communicator, and heard it again a second later from a good distance inland. Without contemplating it, Sonic ran at blinding speed toward the sound of the howl.

"Uh, Okay, Did you hear that Sonic?" Asked Amy.

Sonic didn't reply immediately, and instead opted to run faster, as he deactivated the light of his uniform and ducked into the trees. Within seconds of dodging through heavy brush and trees, Sonic caught sight of Amy.

"Sonic, are you there?" Asked Amy through the communicator.

"I'm here already." Replied Sonic the moment he appeared behind her.

"Ack!" Yelped Amy quietly, "Careful, you could've gotten us spotted!"

"Yeah, sorry, but what's going on here?"

Sonic noticed Sticks move a bit from a camouflaged position at the base of a large tree, previously lying flat and blending in with the dirt. Next to her, Knuckles held a large leaf over his head as he sat on the ground stealthily. Sticks was scanning the trees ahead with her eyes, mumbling illegibly.

"I think it's up there in the trees." Said Sticks, "And It might've spotted us."

"Then we'll fight them!" Said Sonic.

"Sounds like a better plan then mucking around in the forest anymore." Said Knuckles.

"Are you two sure that's a good idea?" Asked Amy, before looked at the bag Sonic held, "You do have Tails' shield generator, right?"

Sonic silently tossed the bag from his shoulder to Amy, and her expression shifted to melancholy as she looked inside. Amy sighed, and pulled the shield generator out of the bag, leaving Tails' other recovered gear inside.

"He was going to use his communicator to activate it." Said Sonic quietly.

Amy simply nodded in response, pulled the orange communicator out, and put it on her free wrist.

"Heads up fellas, there's movement!" Said Sticks.

Sonic heard brush in the distance shake, quickly followed by the sound of heavy footsteps. Sonic immediately posed for battle, while Sticks readied her new pole staff, and Knuckles dropped his leaf and raised his fists in anticipation. Amy however, dropped her hammer to the side as she attempted to figure out how Tails' communicator was calibrated.

In mere moments, a large Creature emerged from the brush and immediately stopped in its tracks. This figure was clearly visible in the moonlight, with dark brown fur that was grey on the chest, visible fangs, and sharp claws. Purple eyes wide and ears twitching, It stood frozen still as it stared at them. Sonic was thrown off mentally, recalling that the creature he saw the night before was different from this one. He noticed that Sticks was caught off guard as well as she took a step back.

"Wait, that's not-"

Sticks was interrupted as the brown furred Creature turned around and ran back into the brush. Sonic dashed past her, wind throwing her off balance. Within seconds, Sonic circled around in front of the creature as it ran. He jumped over a large bush and landed with a low, ready to react posture.

"Your not going anywhere yet!" Yelled Sonic.

The Creature slowed in front of him, head shaking back and forth as if it looked for another escape. Sonic didn't give it the chance as he dashes at it, spinning into a ball and slamming into its head. He heard a surprisingly high-pitched yelp as he bounced back into the air. Sonic landed on his feet and realigned himself, glancing ahead to see the creature backing up, rubbing its face with a claw.

"Guys, hurry up and get the trap ready!" Yelled Sonic whilst the creature was still disoriented.

Amy looked down at the Shield Trap as she fumbled with the controls on her wrist, "Knuckles! Get this yellow box near it!"

Knuckles looked at the Shield Trap, then nodded confidently at Amy, "Got it!"

As the Creature shook its head and growled in Sonic's direction, Sticks had moved herself behind it. Seeing the size of this thing, she'd put away her pole staff and readied her boomerang. The Creature's tail flicked through the air with a whoosh, quickly followed by the same movement by another tail. Sticks immediately lowered her guard in contemplation, as she noticed that it had _two_ tails.

Her half second of contemplation was cut off as the Creature bounded backwards in her direction and away from Sonic. It's head turned to meet Sticks' gaze right as she jumped back out of the way. Raising her boomerang readily while backing up, Sticks watched as it growled at her in a frustrated tone. It raised up on its hind legs, raising its sharp claws readily, its height towered over Sticks. Though ready to throw her boomerang, Sticks' mind kept wrapping back to loose speculation.

Suddenly, Sticks saw knuckles in her periphery running forward with the shield generator. As the purple eyes of the creature turned to see Knuckles, she launched her boomerang. The wooden point of the boomerang slammed into the Creature's temple, knocking its focus away from Knuckles. As the boomerang flew back into the air, a swift claw swipe slammed it into the dirt. Now weaponless, Sticks quickly grabbed at the Pole Staff on her back.

"Sticks, look out!" Yelled Knuckles as he lobbed the metal shield generator at the Creature.

The shield generator landed a few feet from under the Creature. As it was about to swipe another claw directly at Sticks, Sonic jumped at it from behind, his shoes landing on it's head. The creature immediately wobbled backward from the impact, and swiped at Sonic, claws cutting through the air he just occupied. In that moment, Sticks took the opportunity to turn around and run. As Sonic ran past her, he took Sticks' hand and swiftly pulled her along at much higher speed, her legs barely keeping up.

Amy watched as the others moved out of the way, and slammed her hand on a button on Tails' communicator. This however, didn't activate the shield. The Creature looked down and saw the yellow box, audibly reacting with a yelp, as if it knew what it was. Amy frantically pressed the keys on the communicator, walking closer, trying to hit one that would activate the generator. Eyes locked on the communicator, Amy saw her mistake, and pressed the correct pattern of keys. Amy looked up just in time to see the shield generator being thrown directly at her by the Creature's claw. The energy shield shot out midair, slamming right into Amy and Knuckles. Amy's body was thrown backwards into a large tree trunk. Knuckles yelled illegibly as he was thrown to the ground on his back.

"Amy!" Yelled Sonic, before turning to glare at the Creature.

Sonic saw the shield generator fall on its side, emitting an active shield bubble that held Amy against a tree, while covering a large portion of the battlefield with a glowing, transparent wall. Not dwelling any longer, Sonic charged full speed at the Creature, fully intending to knock it out with force.

"Wait, Sonic!" yelled Sticks as she was left behind.

Ignoring that call, Sonic rolled into a ball as he spin-dashed along the ground at the Creature. Right before he impacted it, the Creature jumped with high into the air, slamming its tails into the dirt. Sonic spun right under it and uncontrollably flew through the woods. Landing back on the ground, the Creature kept its momentum by running on all fours directly at Sticks as she stood in It's way.

Watching the Creature charging at her, Sticks raised her polestaff and prepared to fight. As Sticks watched it barreling toward her, the loose sticking bandages on its left forearm caught her eye for a split second. With it almost upon her, Sticks threw one hard slam of her polestaff across the face of the Creature. While it flinched from the blow, Sticks was thrown off of her feet by its left claw.

Stick's back slammed into a smaller tree, force from the Creatures momentum pushing the wind from her lungs. Sticks heard a crack in her arm and the tree behind her. When the claw released, Sticks fell to the ground gasping for breath, body now racked with pain in the arm and chest.

"Sticks!" Yelled Amy as she struggle to turn of the shield generator holding her.

Sonic began running back just in time to see Sticks fall to the ground. Gritting his teeth as the Creature fled into the brush and trees, Sonic started to speed up after it. As he approached however, Sonic heard a loud snapping, as the tree above sticks tipped forward.

"Sonic, get her!" Yelled Amy

Sonic clenched his jaw in frustration, and glanced ahead to see that the Creature had mostly escaped view. The tree fell with more momentum, while Sticks curled up in pain. With a loud slam, the falling tree impacted Knuckles fist as he held it above Sticks.

"I, got it!" Said Knuckles while holding up the tree, "Someone get her!"

In a blue flash, Sonic pulled Sticks by her shoulders out from under the tree. Knuckles dropped the tree to the ground and sighed in relief. Looking at Sticks, Sonic saw her grasping her chest, continuing to wheeze heavily. One arm hung loosely, as she struggled to say something through her gasping breath.

The sound of the Shield wall dissipating diverted Sonic's eyes, as he saw Amy running to him and Sticks. He lied Sticks on the ground carefully, seeing her flinch with the movement.

"Is she okay?" Asked Amy.

"I don't know," replied Sonic, "She's hurt, I can't tell how bad."

Amy knelt down next to Sticks, as Knuckles walked up behind her and looked on in concern. Sonic looked back in the direction the Creature had fled, but now saw it was completely out of sight.

"I'll go chase that thing down!" Sonic said as he stood up.

"No, I need your help!" Said Amy.

Sonic grumbled and huffed, "But, what about Tails?!"

"H-he's!" Muttered Sticks between breaths, "He is…"

Amy instructed Sticks to help her pace her breathing, as Sonic impatiently tapped his foot and waited to hear what She was trying to say. After about a minute, Sticks pushed herself to sitting up, wincing in pain as she held her broken right arm.

"Sonic, you... you didn't find any blood, or fur ,or anything with Tails' stuff…?" Asked Sticks in the spaces between breaths.

Sonic looked away as he heard that, even though he didn't, any thought of Tails being dead was something he wanted to avoid. "No, I didn't."

"Then he's probably still alive somewhere." Said Amy in an effort to comfort Sonic.

"No!" Yelled Sticks as loud as she could, which wasn't very loud, "D-don't call me crazy here…"

"We never call you crazy!" Said Knuckles, "Or at least I don't."

Sonic wondered if She was actually going to go off on another conspiracy theory at a time like this. Amy gave him a look, silently telling him to wait and listen.

"That thing we just saw, wasn't the one I followed…" Said Sticks, "Was it the one, the same one you saw yesterday?"

"I'm pretty sure it was grey before…" Answered Sonic.

"Okay, I think I know," Sticks took a deep breath, "I know where Tails is."

* * *

In Dr. Eggman's lair, Orbot looked on to Eggman's current work with a worried expression. On a metal table was Cubot, currently offline. Eggman carefully worked on some computer components in Cubot's head with advance handheld tools. All lights in the room but those shining on the scene of work were dim. Eggman quietly sautered a new computer chip into Cubots head, whilst rolling multiple unrelated thoughts through his mind.

"Is he going to be okay, Doctor?" Asked Orbot as Eggman closed up Cubot's head.

"What, him? Of course." Answered Eggman.

With a few screws tightened, Eggman press a switch on the back of Cubot's head. Cubot's eyes light up with a blue glow, as he lifted himself up from the table. Though operational now, there was still a prominent claw mark on the metal of Cubot's face.

"Aw jeez, did I fall out of the eggmobile again?" Asked Cubot.

"No, you were struck by a Monster." Said Eggman, putting his tools away next to the table.

"How do you feel?" Asked Orbot.

"I feel like my sensors are saying that my face has been damaged."

"I'll fix that later." Said Eggman, "For now, I have something else to figure out."

Eggman walked from the repair room, Orbot and Cubot following him closely behind. Entering the main living room and parlor at the front of this hightech evil lair, Eggman sat on a white couch, rubbing his mustache thoughtfully. Orbot and Cubot looked at each other, then back at Eggman, waiting for him to give an order.

"Sir, what's on your mind?" Asked Orbot, "Did that Monster scare you?"

"What? No, not at all!" Said Eggman as he raised his posture, "I'm just planning how best to dispose of it!"

Orbot remembered Eggman's high-pitched cowardly scream as if he had recorded it on hard data, which is exactly what he did. While Orbot just accepted that answer and sayed quiet, Eggman grabbed a television remote. A large screen on the wall in front of him flickered on with the pressing of his remote.

"Breaking Middle of the night news!" Said the familiar newscaster voice of Soar the Eagle, "If it's important enough to wake me up, It's important for you to listen up!"

"Huh," said Eggman, "Now that I think about it, that thing was mucking about in the village."

Before Eggman could mull over that thought, it was confirmed as the video shifted from a news logo, to live video of the Meh Burger. Standing in front of the camera with unkempt head feathers and bags under his eyes, Soar the Eagle interviewed two familiar village people.

"So Meh Burger, your place of employment, was ransacked by a Monster?" Asked Soar.

Dave the Intern answered as he fidgeting his fingers, "Uh yeah. I tried to protect our food supply, but they were too powerful, and I was not equipped properly for dealing with monsters by management."

"Interesting, so is our Village going to have to do without Meh Burger's low to average quality food while the restaurant is repaired?"

"Uh no," Answered Dave, "I still need to get in more hours, so we're just going to scoop what ingredients we have into a temporary new sandwich."

Soar visibly recoiled at that news, before shaking his head and turning to another person, Zooey the Fox.

"Now you've said you saw this monster too." Started Soar, "Can you tell our audience just what level of horrifying it was, and just how measured their concern should be?"

"Well, uh, I did see them yes," Said Zooey, "But at first I thought it was someone pulling a prank."

"But it wasn't right?" Said Soar, "We don't do broadcasts this early for boring old vandalism, after all."

"Yeah, I think it might've been a real animal of some kind, because I saw its whole body as it ran off." Said Zooey, "But I have no idea what kind."

"Honestly, I thought it kind of looked like a werewolf," interrupted Dave, "But more like if a werewolf was a fox... Kinda like you."

Zooey furrowed her brow at that comment, while Dave seemed to be oblivious to his potential offensiveness. Soar stepped directly in front of the camera before the two side characters could have more interaction.

"Well, you heard it here first folks," Said Soar, "There's a monster on the loose in Hedgehog Village, and you should keep tuning in till Halloween to be safe!"

As the news logo flashed back on the screen, Eggman turned it off. Orbot noticed Eggman had a disconcerting smirk on his face as he rubbed his chin in thought.

"Interesting news, huh Orbot, Cubot?"

"Were they talking about the same guy who scratched up my face?" Asked Cubot.

"That's the impression I got." Commented Orbot.

"What do you think about the way it looked?"Asked Eggman, "Would you have called it an overgrown _fox_?"

"It did look canine." Answered Orbot, "And it had two tails, kind of like, Tails, I mean Miles Prower... maybe that's a fox thing?"

"Or maybe that's a _Miles Prower_ thing," Said Eggman with a chuckle, "I think we might need to pay Tails a visit tomorrow."

Orbot cocked his head to the side, then recoiled as he realized what Eggman was insinuating.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

I had actually planned to have twice as many scenes in this chapter, but I keep winding up with higher word counts than I planned. I'm maxing out the possible chapters of this story to 5(6(7)), that way, I'll push myself to be more concise.

I'm still somewhat considering making minor changes to this chapter. While I will never change or remove any content in the form of scenes and plot points I have published, I may edit it's presentation to be better. If you think any parts of this chapter, or any chapter could use a specific tough-up, do let me know.

Thanks for reading, and do leave criticism in the comments. I want to know what you think I should improve the most about my writing!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4, Understanding the Situation**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

 **CORRECTIVE NOTE:**

This chapter was accidentally changed to a copy of chapter three for the majority of 11/26/2017 to 11/27/2017. I profusely apologize for any inconvenience and confusion this may have caused any new or returning viewers.

I have corrected that mishap, so the current document below is the actual fourth chapter, thanks for your time.

* * *

As Sonic ran, he narrowly evaded being smacked across the face by a tree branch. Tightening the grip on the yellow laptop in his hands, he corrected his course and focused on the path ahead. Racing across the island was becoming difficult with his racing mind and mental exhaustion. He suddenly caught a glimpse of light ahead, and turned toward it. With a jump over a large-leafed bush, Sonic landed onto the porch of Amy's House.

The front door suddenly flew open and shut. Amy looked to see Sonic skidding across the wood floor, stopping at the edge of the low table in the center of the room. Before she could ask, Sonic plopped Tails' yellow laptop onto the table and flipped it open.

"I found his laptop," said Sonic, "But there was no sign of Tails, or…"

As Sonic trailed off, Sticks turned her head and scrutinized the laptop. She was currently lying flat on one of Amy's couches, her arm wrapped into a makeshift splint.

"His security footage is on there?" Asked Sticks.

"Yeah, I just need to find it." Said Sonic.

Sticks tried to push herself up, but Amy stepped over and said, "Don't move Sticks, I don't know how back your rib fractures are."

Sticks wheezed loudly and pouted at Amy before lying back down. After double checking Sticks' splint, Amy stepped over and looked over Sonic's shoulder at the computer. He grumbled in frustration as he frantically typed.

"Where'd Knuckles go?" Asked Sonic, still staring at the monitor.

"He went into town to make sure everything's fine." Said Amy.

"Oh," said Sonic, "has he…?"

"He's called," answered Amy, "Still no sign of Tails."

A small huff came from Sticks as she stared motionlessly at the ceiling. Sonic stopped typing for a second, before shaking his head and focusing back on the computer.

"Maybe I should have a look?" Offered Amy.

"Yeah, okay." Said Sonic, "I'm lost anyway."

Sonic scooted over and Amy sat down, swiftly searching the laptop's programs. She heard Sonic start tapping his fingers restlessly and glanced over to see him staring at a wall clock. It was well past midnight now. After looking through numerous files, Amy found the program connected to Tails' security system. With a variety of possible commands ranging from locking the doors to blasting everything outside with lasers, Amy opted to check the camera feed.

"Okay, I found the security cameras." Said Amy.

Sonic immediately looked back at the monitor, "Okay, you see where he went?"

"Hold on!" Said Amy, "I'm rolling back to when you were there at sunset."

A video started playing of the inside of Tails' Workshop. Sonic and Tails were visible conversing over a fast food meal. Noticing Sonic tapping his fingers again, Amy sped up to footage. As it fast forwarded, Sonic left the Workshop, and Tails began putting tools away before grabbing the Shield Trap and disappearing through the door. Amy slowed the footage and switched to an outdoor camera.

Tails could be seen stepping from the Workshop, stopping to rub his head and watch the sky. He then appeared to talk at his wrist, that was last conversation Amy had with him. After appearing to take some deep breaths for a moment, Tails walked away again. As he circled around some trees, Amy checked multiple other camera angles. Despite this effort, they only managed to see Tails walk out of view of his own accord.

"Ugh!" Said Sonic as he dropped his head to the table, "We still don't know what happened!"

"I'm sorry Sonic." Said Amy.

"Don't be sorry! Tell us what to do!" Replied Sonic.

"Sonic," said Amy, "we should get some rest, you're clearly exhausted."

"No I'm not!" Said Sonic.

"Those bags under your eyes say otherwise."

"I can't just go to sleep!" Yelled Sonic, "I need to find out where he is!"

"I told you already-" Said Sticks.

Sonic jumped to his feet and cut off Sticks, "I already told you that's absurd! We all know that!"

"Well," said Amy, "Based on what we've dealt with in our time, I think it's plausible."

"What?!" Said Sonic, "You agree with Sticks? You think Tails got some kinda curse that turned him into the monster we fought?!"

Sonic punctuated his frustration with erratic gesticulation. As he talked the wind out of himself, Amy stood up and grabbed his shoulders.

"Sonic, it had two tails and Sticks saw bandages stuck to its left arm!" Amy paused to let that sink in, "What would you rather believe?"

"Fine!" Said Sonic as he threw his arms up, "But if Tails was turned into that thing, what are we supposed to do?!"

"Wait till morning..." Said Sticks groggily.

Sonic puffed his cheeks, and looked back and forth at Amy and Sticks. Sticks was half asleep at this point, probably due to the painkillers. Amy had a look on her face that implied she was worried about him. Huffing loudly, Sonic started marching to the door.

"You can sleep if you want," said Sonic as he opened the door, "I'm going to find Tails."

"Wait!" Yelled Amy.

Sonic's response came as a slam of the door and a whooshing sound in the air as he sped away. Amy sighed and looked at Sticks who had begun snoring. Shaking her head, Amy walked over to her other couch and sat down.

* * *

Hearing shuffling brush and slow footsteps approaching, Tails opened his eyes. All of his vision was blurred and everything around was dark. He couldn't clearly see anything but vague motion and shapes, one distinct shape moved closer directly ahead of him. This would've been alarming if he was awake enough to be scared. The wind brushing along his skin reassured Tails it could just be foliage.

Before Tails closed his eyes, he saw the shape move closer, towering over him. A shadow cast over and blocked out any visible light. Tails knew there was something present. After blinking a few times, the blur in his vision faded slightly. The shape above him knelt down and its appearance cleared, revealing a familiar pale face. Tails' body went numb, he couldn't even muster the will to blink again. The strange, fanged, monster-like Skull stared into him with the voids of its eye sockets.

Pale light became dimly visible around Tails' periphery, but his eyes stayed locked onto the Skull. While it had no discernible expression, he felt intense scrutiny from its stare. Shifting his view slightly, he could see the Skull connected to a large and slightly mummified skeletal body. A bony claw planted in the dirt just ahead of his face. Dread filling him, Tails became sure that he was horrified. Unable to will his body to retreat, he peeked up at the Skull again.

Its other bony claw extended one finger and lowered toward Tails' head. His own mind froze as the sharp nail touched his forehead. The Skull continued staring motionlessly while its claw slowly caressed his head. After an indiscernible amount of time, the claw raised away and the Skull looked up, past Tails. The whole body of the figure shifted backward. In a few grueling moments, the skeletal figure moved away from close proximity. Tails felt more dread as it faded into a blur, his mind panicked when he lost track of its location.

Tails screamed and jumped to his hind legs only to fall backwards onto his tails. He kicked and pushed himself away until his back pressed against the solid surface of tree bark. Panicked, he curled up and closed his eyes while his body and appendages shivered. A radiant warmth suddenly met his hide. Tails' eyes shot open and were immediately overwhelmed with blinding sunlight.

Tails averted his gaze and rubbed his eyes. His panic subsided enough for him to comprehend his surroundings. It must be morning and he had awaken outside in the woods. Tails tried to stand up, but his legs wobbled and protested in aching pain. Grabbing hold of a nearby branch, he stood to his feet and blinked his eyes. The sight of his bare feet bewildered him, not to mention gloveless hands. Tails rubbed his eyes and started to ponder why he was standing alone outside.

"Uhh…" Tails muttered.

Recalling the skeletal figure he saw moments ago, Tails gasped looked up. Ahead was nothing but trees, bushes, and other such green foliage. Cold dirt chilled his feet as he carefully stepped forward. He curiously leaned around a tree and saw nothing but more foliage and the distant sunrise. His brow furrowed in confusion, but then Tails realized he could've been dreaming. That must be it.

The notion of just a dream started to falter as Tails considered why he had been asleep outside. He looked down at himself again, now registering the dirty and matted fur among his hide. Eyebrow raised, he absentmindedly rubbed his temple and winced in pain from touching a bruise there. Was he knocked unconscious? That thought started filling him with dread again. Tails tried to recall the night before to figure out why he would've been wounded and abandoned.

Tails quickly remembered proudly finishing his modified Shield Trap. He had built it to catch that creature. He recalled taking it with him to meet Sonic and the others, but he didn't get there. Tails rubbed his other temple while trying to figure out why he stopped. He'd started feeling ill, then couldn't stop staring at the moon. Tails stepped back in confusion. Why had he been so enthralled by the moon? It was unreasonable at the very least for him to start screaming at it, and turn around to run-.

Tails gasped aloud, that part had to be a dream. Still shivering, he absentmindedly pulled at some of the matted fur on his shoulder. A handful of dark brown fur pulled away loosely. He stared at it, and almost screamed.

* * *

Sonic let his head fall to the surface of a workbench. His muscles were exhausted and he had gone too long without even a nap. Sonic looked around the Workshop in a meek effort to gain some kind of epiphany. He suddenly heard one of the doors slide open and jumped to his feet in response. Knuckles walked inside and made eye contact, appearing surprised to see Sonic.

"Oh Sonic!" Said Knuckles, "What are you doing here?"

"What're you doing?" Asked Sonic.

Sticks shuffled in the door slowly behind Knuckles, bent forward slightly. Her eyes scanned the room with intense scrutiny.

"I was helping Sticks," said Knuckles, "I've been told I make a good doorman and heavy lifter."

Sonic sighed and sat back down into the chair. He was too exhausted to put up any act of confidence. Sticks huffed aloud after carefully looking over every detail of the room that won't be mentioned.

"So you haven't found him?" Asked Sticks.

"No." Said Sonic.

"Maybe he'll turn up soon!" Said Knuckles, "This is his Workshop after all."

Sonic tried to muster the energy to glare at Knuckles, but was interrupted by the door on the opposite side of the building sliding open. Looking over, Sonic couldn't see who was hesitating outside. With a few slow steps, Tails walked into the room with his head hanging low.

"Tails!" Yelled Sonic.

Before Tails could react, Sonic dashed over and hugged him. As he embraced him, Sonic heard Tails whimper as he pushed away. He immediately let go and jumped back.

"Sorry!" Said Sonic, "Are you hurt?"

Tails refused to make eye contact and his ears were pressed flat against his head. As Sonic looked more closely at Tails, he saw just how dirty and matted his fur was. He was visibly shivering while his disheveled tails covered his lower body.

"Tails! Where've you been?" Asked Knuckles.

A moment passed, but no one moved or restated the question. Tails rubbed his shoulders nervously and his jaw moved silently. After he coughed quietly, Tails made an effort to answer.

"I," mumbled Tails, "I found out..." He stopped for a moment, "It turns out lycanthropes are real..."

Sonic's brow raised as he realized what Tails said. He cocked his head and began wondering how he'd deduced that. Sonic's eyes widened as he got an answer from the context of Tails' condition. He was legitimately at a loss for words, which didn't happen often.

"Then, are you okay now?" Asked Sticks as she approached behind Sonic.

"I think so." Said Tails, "I'm going to…"

As Tails tried think, he looked up just enough to see Sticks' splint. His blue eyes shot up and met Sticks' frightened expression.

"Oh no..." muttered Tails, "I'm sorry, I'll fix this!"

Tails started to back away with a mortified look in his eyes. Sonic reached his hand out, but hesitated as he tried to figure out what he should do.

"We already got Sticks' arm put in a splint." Said Knuckles, "I'm actually more worried about what's up with you right now."

Seeing that Knuckles didn't catch the subtext, Sticks said, "Knuckles, he means he's the lycanthrope!"

"Lycanwhat?" Asked Knuckles.

"I'm…!" Said Tails, "I'm a…"

"Werefox?" Suggested Sonic.

"I don't know!" Yelled Tails, "I'll find out, I'll fix it!"

Tails backed up to the wall despite no one closing in toward him.

"Calm down, it's okay!" Said Sonic, "We'll sort this out."

Tails finally looked Sonic in the eyes. Nodding slightly, he stepped forward and paced his breath in an effort to calm down.

"Okay Sonic," said Tails, "I just need to, uh, run some tests. Quickly."

Sonic nodded, mildly relieved to see Tails forming a plan of action.

"Can I help?" Asked Knuckles.

"Uh," mumbled Tails, "Hold this."

Tails stepped forward and placed a clump of matted dark brown fur into Knuckles' hand. Knuckles looked at it curiously for a moment before shrugging.

With his hands free, Tails shuffled over to some shelves and threw on spare gloves and a pair of slippers. He then dug through multiple drawers near the new Chemical Analysis Machine. Loudly shaking around metal and glass, Tails pulled out a variety of lab test-tubes, cotton swabs, tweezers, and other matter collection tools. As they watched Tails start swabbing his mouth, Sticks poked Sonic's arm to get his attention.

"What is it?" Asked Sonic.

"Keep and eye on him and call Amy." Said Sticks, "I'm going to prepare some things from my house."

"He's fine now." Said Sonic, "But I was going to do that anyway."

Sticks nodded, then gestured to Knuckles that she was leaving.

"Oh, hold on!" Said Knuckles.

As Tails was carefully swabbing tears from his eye socket, Knuckles jogged up beside him and held out the brown fur in his hand.

"What did you want me to do with this?" Asked Knuckles

"Uh," Tails put the swap in a tube and covered it, "The fur! Yes, put it here."

Tails picked up a different test tube and shoved as much fur into it that would fit. He then put the rest into a plastic bag and placed the test tube with the others. Knuckles started to turn around, but stopped when Tails spoke again.

"Can you hold this while I clip off some nails?" Asked Tails as he handed Knuckles another tube and took off a glove.

"Uhh," muttered Knuckles.

Looking to Sticks, Knuckles saw her gesture for him to stay as she walked out the door herself.

"Yeah, sure!" Replied Knuckles.

While Tails worked, Sonic sat down and called Amy on his wrist communicator. After a short conversation, Amy said she'd grab Tails' things and head over. Now aimlessly waiting, Sonic started tapping his foot restlessly. While most of what he just learned was concerning to say the least, seeing Tails alive had calmed whatever nerve was keeping him awake. Eyes wandering to a window, Sonic watched the colors of sunrise.

"Yeowch!" Yelled Tails.

"Are you okay?" Asked Sonic.

"Yeah…" said Tails, "Just cut off too much of my nail."

"Okay, just call me over if you need anything." Said Sonic

Sonic sighed and leaned down to the table. Tails glanced at him with an unreadable expression before focusing on his task.

"So, your nails got awful big, huh?" Said Knuckles.

Tails held his finger tightly in pain and said, "Uh, yeah, that's why I'm gonna test them too."

"Okay," said Knuckles, "So what are we doing next?"

"Well," Tails looked at a small mirror leaning on the table nearby, "Can you see anything else noticeably different about me?"

"Hmm," Hummed Knuckles as he looked closely at Tails' face, "Well, I don't think your canines were visible before."

Tails gasped, and checked the mirror again. Turning his head revealed a sharp tooth subtly protruding from his lip. Without a second though, Tails grabbed a pair of pliers and pulled up his upper lip.

"Whoa Whoa Whoa!" Yelled Knuckles, "I think it looks good!"

"Uh, that's not..." Tails cocked his head as he realized how damaging pulling out his tooth would be, "Oh! Sorry!"

Knuckles laughed and nervously rubbed his head, "You do kinda stink though, if you want to deal with that instead."

* * *

Waiting in the Eggmobile, Dr. Eggman watched Orbot and Cubot carry Dreamcaster's separated body and head. While Orbot dragged the limp skeletal chassis to the magnetic clamp under the Eggmobile, Cubot handed its head up to Eggman. Upon closer examination, the metal head was heavily gashed where the monster's teeth had bore into it. There was probably more damage to the components inside beyond the torn wires jutting from its neck.

"Ugh, it'd take forever to get this thing fully operational again!" Said Eggman. "I'd also wind up going over budget! Mind control components aren't cheap anymore."

"Well Sir," said Orbot, "At least we still have enough resources to do a good ole' fashioned robot attack."

"Yeah!" Said Cubot, "We can even put pumpkins on the other Bots for some aesthetic!"

"That'd be underwhelming at this point!" Said Eggman, "Not too mention I think it makes no economic sense to import so many pumpkins just for decoration!"

"Where do they even grow those?" Asked Cubot.

"Not on this Island." Said Eggman.

With Dreamcaster's chassis magnetically clamped to the Eggmobile, Orbot and Cubot hovered into their side pods. Eggman lifted the vehicle into the air and entered some coordinates. After a flying a good distance, Orbot noticed they weren't taking the usual path to their Lair.

"Where are we heading now, Sir?" Asked Orbot.

"I figure if I'm going to be the scariest villain this Halloween, I'd better scout out our competition." Said Eggman.

Eggman took some time to explain a plan to Orbot. After flying for a little while longer, Tails' House and Workshop came into view.

"Oh hey, Tails' house!" Said Cubot, "Are we trick or treating early?"

"No, we're doing research!" Said Eggman.

The Eggmobile landed in the sandy clearing between the House and Workshop, far enough away as to not alert anyone inside. When they approached the Workshop, Eggman hesitated. The memory of how terrifying the Monster was shook his nerves.

"Uh, Orbot, go knock on the door." Commanded Eggman.

"Well, okay." Said Orbot.

Orbot raised his metal arm and knocked on the door four times. After a few seconds, It slide open to reveal Knuckles the Echidna holding a few small tools.

"Oh, hey Eggman!" Said Knuckles.

"Eggman?!" Yelled Sonic as he jumped awake.

"Yes, Eggman." Confirmed Dr. Eggman, "I was wondering if Tails is home, I have a proposition to make."

Eggman heard shuffling from inside as Sonic ran up to the door. His eyes scanned over Eggman with mild contempt. Sonic was clearly exhausted, there were visible bags under his eyes.

"I'll handle this Knuckles."

"Okay Sonic!"

Knuckles jogged back into the Workshop and Sonic stepped outside, sliding the door closed behind him.

"What do you want?" Asked Sonic.

"I already said I want to see Tails." Said Eggman, "Something's come up, and I need his input on the situation."

Sonic squinted his eyes as he tried to read Eggman, who wore a sleazy smile.

"What did you do?" Asked Sonic.

"Why so accusatory?!" Said Eggman, "If anything, I should be asking what you let out of that Ruin!"

"What?" Replied Sonic, "We didn't find anything in there! The place is a dump."

"The gash on Cubot's face suggests otherwise." Reputed Eggman.

Sonic stopped glaring at Eggman long enough to notice Cubot's injury. After a moment of scrutiny, Sonic said, "Stop being so vague and just tell me what the problem is!"

"My problem is a large, clawed monster catching me in its path of destruction while I was minding my own business in town!" Yelled Eggman.

"Hold on, what?" Asked Sonic, "You're saying you saw a monster?"

"Yeah," said Eggman, "It was tall, brown, had purple eyes, large fangs, and most strangely, two tails."

Sonic's composure almost faltered, but he shook his head and said, "It is almost Halloween, you sure it wasn't someone in a costume?"

"Yes, because someone in a costume wouldn't be able to tear my robots apart!"

They heard a gasp from just inside the Workshop. Eggman looked over to see Tails looked at him through the nearby window with a test tube in his mouth. His blue eyes started to give a familiar glare. Eggman smirked, inciting intensified contempt from Sonic.

"Well that sounds like something we can handle." Said Sonic, "So why don't you bug off!"

"Because I came to see what Tails thinks about it." Retorted Eggman, "Not to mention, I figured you'd be more appreciative of my noble effort at protecting the village!"

As Sonic grumbled, the door behind him flung open and Tails stomped out, followed by a bewildered Knuckles. Eggman got a better look at the unkempt state of Tails' hygiene, but was also legitimately intimidated by the expression on his face. Tails spat out the test tube as he tried to talk, and handing it back to Knuckles.

"How was your mind control Robot supposed to protect the village?!" Yelled Tails.

"Wait, How did you know we had Dreamcaster with us?" Asked Cubot.

"Yeah, I didn't see you there." Added Eggman, "Did I?"

Tails looked around frantically for a moment, not dropping his glare.

"You have it right over there!" Answered Tails.

Eggman looked back to see the Eggmobile and its cargo clearly visible behind him.

"Either way!" Interjected Sonic, "We'd love to help, but alone, excluding you."

"Don't change the subject!" Said Eggman, "You all clearly had a busy night, and I have an idea why!"

"Its none of your business!" Yelled Tails, "You should've just stayed out of the way and left me alone!"

"Boss," Said Cubot, "I'm confused."

"Frankly, so am I." Added Knuckles.

"You idiots!" Yelled Eggman, "I'm trying to be clever and charismatically blackmail Tails because I know he's a Werefox!"

"THAT'S NOT EVEN LINGUISTICALLY ACCURATE!" Yelled Tails.

"YOUR NOT LINGUISTICALLY ACCURATE!" Yelled Eggman louder.

"Shut up Eggman!" Interjected Sonic, "I don't care what you think you know, just screw off and leave us alone! Or else!"

"Or else what?" Asked Eggman, "You'll sick your primitive canine on me?!"

Tails' ear twitched, and he promptly turned around and stomped into the Workshop. Before Sonic or Eggman could asked, Tails marched back out with some sort of yellow raygun. Without hesitation, he aimed it at Eggman's face.

"Hold on, we don't need to-" pleaded Eggman.

Eggman was interrupted by a bright beam impacting his upper lip. He recoiled in fear, but then realized he didn't feel any pain. Touching his face, Eggman noticed he couldn't feel his mustache, it was completely gone.

"Whoa!" Yelled Sonic, "What did you…"

Sonic interrupted himself with a uncontrolled snicker, seeing only a bit of ash where Eggman's mustache should be. Soon, Sonic, Knuckles, and Cubot were all laughing while Tails and Eggman growled at each other.

"You're going to regret that!" Yelled Eggman.

"I don't care at this point." Said Tails.

Eggman grumbled and promptly marched back to his Eggmobile, Cubot and Orbot following behind. As Eggman flew up into the air, he glanced down. Tails continued to glare and his two tails flicked in a familiar, anxious manner. With nothing else to do, Eggman entered some coordinates and flew toward his Lair.

"Orbot, did you get the Flybots inside?" Asked Eggman.

"One in the Workshop and one in the House." Replied Orbot.

"Hehehe, we'll have to see what the Village has to say about this!" Said Eggman.

* * *

Back in Tails' workshop, Sonic and Knuckles had finally finished laughing. Tails placed the yellow raygun on a shelf as he silently walked back to his work station. Sitting down and looking over his row of test tubes, Tails started mumbling to himself while trying to get back on track.

"We should've greeted him with that!" Said Sonic. "For a second I thought you were going to blow his head off."

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna kill anyone." Replied Tails.

"So is Eggman's mustache going to grow back?" Asked Knuckles.

"It will," said Tails, "I was going to use that hair disintegration ray if he decided to trick or treat at my house."

"That's a pretty good trick!" Said Sonic, "You got any other Halloween surprises?"

Tails looked at Sonic with a blank stare, before refocusing on his tests.

"Sorry!" Said Sonic, "I meant, like, surprises on purpose."

"Yeah, did you make a cool costume?" Asked Knuckles.

Tails tried to smile for a moment, before his expression fell back to exhaustion. Pointing at a locker, Tails said, "I made a costume over there, I was going for an undead blacksmith, or something."

While Tails continued typing commands into the Chemical Analysis Machine, Sonic and Knuckles investigated the locker. Inside hung a brown blacksmith's apron with ragged gloves and a modified welding helmet. Sonic whistled as he noticed the multiple shards of metal convincingly attached to appear as though the wearer had been repeatedly impaled.

"Wow, very impressive!" Said Sonic.

"Its okay," replied Tails, "Zooey helped me with the initial design."

"Its definitely much cooler than my costume." Commented Knuckles.

"Do you have a costume?" Asked Sonic.

"No, I was just going to dig around like a killer worm." Answered Knuckles.

After a little while of Sonic trying to lighten Tails' mood, the door opened and Amy entered. The bag containing Tails' attire and Shield Trap was over her shoulder and she smiled optimistically. Amy held the door open and helped Sticks inside, who was audibly grumbling at the refusal to let her walk on her own.

"You seriously shouldn't be walking around yet." Chastised Amy, "Why did you leave without telling me?"

"I brought Knuckles!" Said Sticks.

"Not on your way back!" Replied Amy.

"What's the big deal?" Asked Sticks "I'm just a little bruised."

"Your ribs are fractured!" Said Amy, "If you fall or take a blow to the chest, you might break them and pierce your lung!

As the two argued, Tails shifted his posture lower and put his hand over his face while continuing to work. His two tails shifted nervously as Amy explained Sticks' injuries. Though clearly aware of their arrival, Tails tried to act as though he was too engrossed in his work to notice. While Sticks found a chair and sat down, Amy jovially walked over to him.

"I'm so glad your okay Tails!" Said Amy, "How are you feeling, after all that?"

"I think I'm fine." Answered Tails as he stared at the monitor, "Though I'm a bit sore."

"Not to be rude, but you look and smell like you need a bath." Said Amy.

"I know." Replied Tails.

As Amy talked, she closely looked over Tails' condition. He kept holding his hand to his head, where she noticed a visible bruise on his temple. There was still matted fur stuck on his shoulders and back. His twin tails looked too ragged to be remotely aerodynamic.

"He's been focused testing himself," said Sonic, "I think he'll know what's up with the whole lycanfrocy or whatever soon."

"Don't we already know?" Asked Sticks, "It's not like werewolf stories are uncommon."

"Maybe…" Said Tails, "I know... I know it happened when I looked at the moon."

"How much of last night do you remember?" Asked Amy.

Tails shifted again and averted his eyes, taking a moment to answer with, "I don't, remember too much."

"So you have no idea what you were doing last night?" Asked Sticks.

"Uhhh," Tails trailed off for a moment, "Not entirely, but from the context…"

"Do you want to know?" Asked Sonic.

"I don't need to." Answered Tails, "So let's…"

"It's fine!" Said Sonic, "I can't imagine what it'd be like to turn into a werehog or something."

As Tails trailed off again, Amy glanced at Sonic. Based on his expression and posture, Sonic hadn't slept yet. He did seem to have calmed down at least. With the conversation paused, Amy pulled the bag from her shoulder and placed it on a table near Tails.

"I brought all of your stuff." Said Amy, "We used your laptop while searching for you, hope you don't mind."

Tails' ears perked up and he looked at Amy. After a few seconds of finishing a note, he stood up and looked over the bag. Amy watched as he pulled every item out and laid them on the table. First his laptop, then goggles, wrist communicator, Shield Trap, but he paused when he picked up the remains of a shoe.

"I've yet to wear out shoes that bad," said Knuckles, "You have an extra pair?"

"Yeah, old ones." Answered Tails, "Probably can't fix this…"

"I did fix your belt though!" Chimed Amy.

Tails dropped the destroyed shoe and pulled out his belt, which was now intact aside from some stretch marks.

"Thank you." Said Tails quietly.

"It's the least I could do."

"So what's our plan now?" Asked Sticks while tapping her foot.

"Uh," Tails looked at the Chemical Analysis Machine, "I think I've got enough samples to run every possible test, so I'll find out how this works."

"You think you can cure yourself?" Asked Sonic.

"Well, probably." Said Tails, "It'd be easier if I wasn't tired, uncomfortable, and sore."

"Why don't you go clean yourself up." Suggested Amy, "Meanwhile we'll make a plan to find whoever incited all of this."

Tails looked bewildered for a moment and Said, "But I did- Oh, the creature Sonic and I saw!"

"Yeah, I'd guess they're also a were… wolf?" Said Sonic.

"Either way, we'll handle it." Confirmed Amy.

With the push from Amy, Tails finished calibrating the Chemical Analysis Machine to run all possible automatic tests. He then took his attire with him to his house while the others stayed in the Workshop. Feeling confident he'd collected enough evidence, Tails started brushing all the loose fur from his hide.

Cleaning himself was much more difficult than expected. Most of the darker fur came loose with brushing, but some clumps refused to part without some pain. His two tails were worse, as both harbored mangled fur and one managed to snag a small clump of burrs. Tails mentally chastised himself for running around so haphazardly while painfully ripping out the burrs.

After brushing as much fur out as possible, Tails started a shower. This process took twice as much shampoo than usual as he tried to remove the smell of raw meat from his body. While scrubbing his face for the third time, he realized much of the stench was emanating from his mouth. Remembering his diet the night before, Tails thoroughly brushed his teeth and used an exorbitant amount of mouthwash. After what felt like too much time, he felt clean enough to put on his uniform.

Tails returned to the Workshop wearing his whole uniform, though with new gloves and spare shoes. Sticks was explaining that they should prepare some sort of secure engagement for him. She was shushed by Sonic and Amy, but Tails quietly agreed to the idea. He then shuffled to the other side of the Workshop to do some hands-on tests. All four of them noticed he was making himself sparse, but then continued discussing necessary plans.

As Amy agreed they should make sure there's a secure place in case Tails couldn't cure himself, Sonic tuned out of the conversation. He hated talking about Tails while he hide away on the other side of the room. Not to mention there wasn't much for him to say about the current situation. Waiting around wasn't quite as reassuring as smashing the robot of the week. While Amy convinced Sticks to let her and Knuckles handle the heavy lifting and construction, Sonic casually looked over at Tails.

Tails leaned forward, head pressed against a microscope. He rapidly scribbled notes while muttering and rubbing his temple. Based on the way Tails was crossing out and rewriting almost every note, Sonic worried he wasn't in the best condition to work. A yawn came to Tails, and Sonic couldn't help but yawn as well. They both clearly needed more sleep, but he felt guilty about the idea of resting now.

Within a few more minutes, Amy, Sticks, and Knuckles seemed to agree on some shell of a plan. While Knuckles helped Sticks get up and walk outside, Amy tried to convince Sonic to get some rest. When he bluntly refused with the reason that Tails wasn't resting, Amy redirected her concern. With some verbal prying, she learned Tails hadn't eaten since waking up in the woods.

"You really should take a break and get something to eat." Said Amy, "Maybe get a nap in as well."

Tails considered Amy's suggestion for a moment, then flipped through some early printed test results. After skimming over one paper for a moment, he said, "I think, based on hypothesis and early tests on my metabolism, that the transformation used a lot of energy."

"Okay?" Said Amy, "Do you just need to take a multivitamin, or…?"

"No," replied Tails, "I just know I wound up eating a awful lot, when I, uh."

"You heard about the Meh Burger?" Said Amy.

"...I did." Said Tails, "But I feel like I shouldn't overeat right now. It could induce more, symptoms."

"But you haven't eaten at all today!" Said Amy.

"Maybe that'll help," suggested Tails, "If I don't fix myself before tonight, I mean."

Aware that Tails wasn't going to change his mind on her account, Amy turned to Sonic. He hadn't noticed their conversation and simply stared into the distance. After a little bit of explaining why not eating when your body is using up a lot of energy is bad, Sonic agreed to help change Tails' mind.

"So hey Tails," started Sonic.

Tails didn't move his eyes, and took a moment to respond with, "Yeah…?"

"I know you're worried about all this, but do you want to head out for some grub?" Asked Sonic.

"...where?" Asked Tails.

"Well, Meh burger apparently has a replacement sandwich," said Sonic, "And maybe they still have chili dogs-"

"They don't." Said Tails.

"Oh." Sonic's exhaustion seemed to increase.

As Tails reached for a report printing nearby, he suddenly jumped onto the table grabbing at something. Sonic was thrown into confusion as Tails wildly grabbed at the air, catching the wing of a small round thing. The black, round, metal Flybot wiggled from Tails' grasp and flew into the air. In a flash, Tails leaped forward and snapped down on it with his jaw. Amy gasped and Sonic ran forward as Tails fell to the ground with a thud.

"What just happened?!" Asked Amy.

Tails lifted himself up, and turned his head to reveal the small Flybot caught between his teeth.

"Oh, I didn't see that thing!" Said Sonic as he helped Tails to his feet.

"Is that one of Eggman's spy robots?" Asked Amy.

Tails nodded, before reaching for glass jar and spitting the small bot into it. Quickly screwing a cap on the top, Tails held it up to his eyes.

"Of course he's trying to spy on us now." Said Sonic.

"Screw off Eggman! I'm not in the mood!" Yelled Tails, before throwing the glass jar into a drawer and locking it.

"You think he heard anything damaging?" Asked Sonic.

"I saw it after I alluded to transforming," said Tails, "So he's probably really confident in his earlier accusation."

"Yeah, but what's he going to do about it?" Said Amy, "Throw some robots at you tonight?"

Tails looked down and walked away, grabbing the printed report. Sonic and Amy exchanged a glance and shrugged at each other while Tails jotted down more notes. With a push from Amy, Sonic doubled down on his offer to head out for a brunch meal. Seeing Amy and Sonic convinced he should take a break, Tails reluctantly agreed. After organizing his data and double checking the automatic test schedule, Tails followed Amy and Sonic out to the Village.

* * *

As the Trio walked into the Village and towards the Meh Burger, they observed even more Halloween decorations adorning most houses. Many villagers had pumpkin jack o'lanterns out, and the shops were making too much use of the color orange to attract attention. However, a noticeable tension hung around social circles. Some nervously talked about the antics of the potential monster, while others dismissed it as one of the mediocre villains.

Upon approaching the outdoor restaurant Meh Burger, they saw multiple disgruntled folks leaving in a huff. People either wore a face of disgust or repressed hunger as they left. A line of concerned looking citizens waited for their scrap and fry burgers. Tails slowed to a stop, head hanging low as he avoided looking ahead. Sonic and Amy turned around and noticed Tails' shame, so they made an effort to encourage him.

"C'mon bud," said Sonic, "I'm sure fries on a bun aren't that bad."

As someone threw a tray of food at a trashcan in rage, Tails replied, "I dunno, maybe I'll just head back…"

"You know this isn't your fault, right?" Said Sonic.

"Besides," added Amy, "It's not like everyone couldn't just eat at home for a few days."

Tails didn't respond this time, as he leaned away but stayed put. While Sonic tried to figure out what to say, he looked past Tails to see Mayor Fink approaching with an urgent look on his face.

"Oh good, I need to speak with you guys!" Said Mayor Fink.

"What's going on?" Asked Sonic.

"Other than the problem with the Meh Burger?" Asked Mayor Fink, "Nothing, that's what I need to talk about!"

"We're already working on it ourselves, actually." Said Amy.

"I figured," said Fink, "But I need appear as though I'm taking action. The owner of Meh Burger is pretty upset about the money he's losing over this!"

"How much money was that meh-meat worth, anyway?" Asked Sonic.

"Apparently enough to be mad about." Answered Fink, "But I also need to give you some intel I heard, preferably in my office."

"You can't tell us in public?" Asked Amy.

"I think you'd rather I not." Said Fink.

Tails felt nervous chills as the Mayor said that, but shook off his worries. The Trio begrudgingly agree to follow the Mayor to his office in City Hall. The wooden office was colored with green wallpaper, and the room was well adorned with wood framed artwork. Mayor Fink circled behind his desk and sat down. The others watched as he nervously adjusted the location of his name plaque.

"So, what did you want to tell us?" Asked Sonic.

"Well, Dr. Eggman told me Tails did it." Said Mayor Fink.

"Uhhh..." Mumbled Tails as he froze and his eyes widened.

"That's ridiculous!" Said Amy in quick retort, "The witnesses on TV said it was some kind of large creature."

"That's what I said!" Replied Fink, "But just to be clear, you didn't put on a costume and steal all of those patties, right?"

"I, uhh…." Stuttered Tails as tried to look Mayor Fink in the eye.

"No, Tails doesn't own any costumes like that." Said Sonic.

"Besides, that sounds like something the Lightning Society would do." Added Amy.

"Okay, that's good enough for me!" Said Mayor Fink, before he looked at Tails, "But, um, why is he crying?"

Sonic turned to see Tails shivering in place, hands shaking and small tears starting to run down his cheeks.

"Tails, it's fine!" Said Sonic as he grabbed Tails' shoulder.

"He's just uh, so distraught by such vandalous acts!" Said Amy, following with a cheesy laugh.

"Or, it's because he's guilty!" Said Eggman, abruptly appearing from behind a window curtain and wearing a fake dollar-store mustache.

"Were you just hiding in my curtains this whole time?!" Asked Mayor Fink.

"That's beside the point!" Said Eggman, "You didn't even listen to me right, either!"

"Go, Away!" Said Sonic as he glared sharply at Eggman.

Eggman kept talking, "I said Tails transformed into the Monster that did it, not that he put on a costume!"

"I didn't know Tails could transform." Said Fink, "Isn't it your brother that does that?"

"Steve shapeshifts!" Corrected Eggman, "Tails turns into a horrible monstrosity and ruins my plans during a full moon!"

"This is all frankly ridiculous!" Said Amy, "Why don't we just go and find the ones that did do it-"

"I-I'm sorry!" Yelled Tails, "I screwed up! I should've known!"

"Buddy, you don't need to-" Said Sonic.

Tails looked Sonic in the eyes, his own eyes red with tears, "I should've been smarter! A-and I wouldn't have…"

"I am so confused right now." Said Mayor Fink as he scratched his head.

"He's admitting that it his fault!" Replied Eggman.

"If it's anyone's fault, it's yours!" Yelled Sonic.

"How is it-" asked Fink before being cut off.

"I wasn't the one infecting myself with thousand year old rabies!" Yelled Eggman.

"Please! Just explain what is happening!" Yelled Fink.

Sonic and Eggman stopped yelling, but continued exchanging a variety of contemptful expressions.

"Well, uh." Said Amy, "How do I explain this…"

"I infected myself with a mutagenic pathogen inside the Ruin," answered Tails as he nervously fidgeted his hands together, "It turned me into that, creature, that vandalized Meh burger and broke Sticks' arm..."

"You broke Sticks' arm?!" Said Fink, "Which one is Sticks again?"

"She's the Badger." Answered Amy.

"Oh."

"He's basically a Werewolf!" Said Eggman, "I just thought I should do the right thing and inform the local government so we can have a good ole' fashioned witch trial!"

"I'm not brave enough to lynch anyone!" Yelled Fink.

"Witch, not lynch!" Corrected Eggman.

Mayor Fink looked around the room nervously, apparently taking a moment to process all of this information. He slowly opened a drawer and pulled out a small stack of weathered papers. A few awkward moments passed as he shuffled through the parchment.

"Well, there's no legal precedent for a situation like this." Said Fink, "So, uh, I'm not sure what to do."

"Just do nothing!" Said Amy, "Tails is smart, and he's already working on curing himself!"

"He's dangerous!" Said Eggman, "If I were the supreme ruler of this Village, which is the gig I've been trying to get for years now, I'd banish him!"

"For what?!" Yelled Sonic, "You've done much more destruction to this village! And he didn't even have control over himself!"

"What about that one time he made the shield hemisphere that wound up increasing property damage to the Village?" Asked Eggman.

"YOU WERE THE ONE FIRING AT IT AND PURPOSELY DESTROYING THINGS!" Yelled Sonic.

"Well, he built that Hypnobot that nearly took over the world!" Retorted Eggman.

"YOU JOINED FORCES WITH IT AND ENABLED ITS RAMPAGE!"

Unknown to Sonic, Tails had started backing away to the door as he hyperventilated. Amy turned to see Tails stumbling away, tears running down his face. As she tried to get Sonic's attention, Mayor Fink took control of the conversation.

"Well maybe they're both equally problematic?" Suggested Fink, "I'll just order both Eggman and Tails to house arrest until after Halloween tomorrow, is that fair?"

"NO!" Yelled Sonic, "Eggman's not a law abiding citizen! He'll just attack us whenever he wants!"

"Well what am I supposed to do about that?" Asked Fink, "Either way, we've been talking about this long enough."

"This is kangaroo court!" Said Amy, "You're not even charging Tails with anything!"

The door at the end of the office flung open loudly, and everyone turned to see a glimpse of Tails running away.

"Tails!" Yelled Sonic.

Seething with frustration, Sonic angrily slapped the fake mustache off of Eggman's face then dashed out of the office after Tails.

"Well, I guess that settles it." Said Mayor Fink, "I have to go prepare my superstitious monster warding trinkets and silver now... For unrelated circumstances."

Amy sighed in defeat, before running out after Sonic. Eggman stayed behind, picking up and trying to re-stick the fake mustache to his face for an incredibly awkward amount of time.

Tails shoved the front door out of his way and stumbled outside. Ahead he saw a group of people from the book club approaching, including Zooey. He stood in place for a second, confused by his own emotional turmoil. When Zooey made eye contact with him, her eyes widened. Tails suddenly winced and grabbed his chest in pain. He heard Sonic stop behind him, saying something Tails didn't bother to understand. Heart racing and fingers going numb, he ran away in sheer terror. The concerned calls from his friends only made him run faster.

All of Tails' senses were overwhelming him as he ran. His foot suddenly snagged on a tree root and tripped him to his knees. Wheezing and gasping for air seemed to make his chest hurt even more. He tried to scramble to his feet, but stumbled and fell to the dirt. Filled with fear, he backed up along the ground to the nearby tree. Holding his hands to his chest, Tails curling his trembling tails around himself tightly. The numbing of his hands made him worry that he could be dying, which terrified him to no respite.

Sonic skidded to a stop as he saw Tails curled up behind a tree. Tails' entire body trembled as he held his chest tightly and gasped for air. Sonic had no idea what to do now, he was mortified by Tails' condition. He knelt down, and saw a glimpse of the fear in Tails' eyes.

Sonic jumped up and yelled, "Amy! HELP!"

Amy ran over, followed closely by Zooey, who stopped and gasped aloud at the sight of Tails. Amy looked to Sonic for insight, but he just stammered illegibly as he outstretched and waved his arms helplessly at Tails. Amy immediately dropped beside Tails and took one of his arms somewhat forcefully. He whined faintly while she held her fingers to his wrist and focused on his pulse. She looked up after a few seconds and gave a confused look to Sonic.

"He's not having a heart attack..." said Amy, "But I don't know-"

"I think he's having a panic attack!" Said Zooey, "Has this happened before?"

"He's been scared before, but like this!" Replied Sonic.

"We just had a stressful meeting with the Mayor." Said Amy, "So that'd be my best guess too."

Tails looked up, eyes flooded with tears and his jaw quivering. A shaky stutter came from his voice, before he coughed and gasped for air. Sonic put a hand to Tails' shoulder, unable to say anything in his own concerned panic.

"Tails, you're going to be okay," said Zooey, "Just focus and breath!"

Taking fast, wheezy gasps, Tails nodded slightly and closed his eyes. After a few moments of forcing his breathing into a rhythm, he started to gain control his lungs. He continued trembling, but loosened the grip on his chest in mild relief. As Sonic watched Tails slowly improve, he started to calm down himself.

"You'll make it buddy..." said Sonic with a sigh, "I'm sorry about Eggman, but we'll sort this out!"

Tails rubbed his eyes and looked at Sonic with shame. After a moment of stuttering, Tails said, "I-I'm sorry, I don't know why-" He coughed abruptly and took another breath.

"You're fine, It's completely understandable." Said Amy.

"So what happened in there?" Asked Zooey.

"We, uh..." mumbled Sonic, "We had a stressful night."

"Did you guys run into that wild creature?" Asked Zooey.

"...Yeah." Answered Amy.

"Was it actually dangerous then?" Asked Zooey, unaware that Tails was hiding his face again.

"Not particularly," Replied Amy, "But there's a number of other things... I don't think we can go into it all."

"That's fine!" Said Zooey as she stood up, "I should probably get back to my day anyway."

"Hold up," said Sonic, "How'd you know what was wrong with Tails?"

"I had a panic attack this morning," answered Zooey with a shrug, "I just kinda recognized it."

"T-thanks." Said Tails.

"Your welcome," replied Zooey, "I hope you'll feel better soon."

While Zooey walked back into town, Tails uncurled himself a bit. He still shivered, but was breathing and no longer in pain. Sonic stood up and offered his hand to Tails with a welcoming smile. When Tails looked however, he turned his head away again.

"Is something still buggin' you pal?" Asked Sonic.

"I remember everything..." Said Tails.

Sonic and Amy exchanged a confused look, both waiting for an elaboration.

"What was that?" Asked Amy.

"I remember everything," Repeated Tails, looking back up with new tears rolling from his eyes, "I remember what I did last night, I remember doing all of it."

"You do?" Asked Amy.

"It feels like It didn't happen," said Tails, "Kinda like a dream, but I know it happened."

"Oh man," said Sonic, "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I don't know," said Tails, "I, I was scared..."

"Well, we're not going to judge you for that." Said Amy, "If anything, its useful!"

Tails rubbed his eyes again and sighed, before saying, "I just can't get the memory of hurting Sticks out of my mind…" he trailed off silently for a moment, "I shouldn't have done that, I could've jumped over her… I didn't need to run in the first place…"

"Tails, calm down, you weren't in control of yourself!" Said Sonic.

"I guess…" replied Tails.

Sonic offered his hand again, and Tails silently took it. With one tug, Tails lifted to his feet. As he wobbled and got his bearings straight, his stomach growled loudly.

"You want to get something to eat bud?" Asked Sonic with a small chuckle.

"I'll just go home," said Tails, "I've got to work on fixing this..."

"Well, Sonic can get you a meal to go." Suggested Amy, "I'll try looking in the library, there might be some helpful information in a book."

"Good idea," said Sonic, "You want me to help you home bud?"

"I can get there," said Tails, "I'll just avoid looking at any midday Moons."

Sonic laughed, but Tails could only muster the will to sheepishly smile. With some short farewells, Tails headed back to his Workshop. He peeked back to watch Sonic and Amy walking into town together. He immediately worried about what they may be saying about him now. He knew it was unreasonable to assume they'd hate him, but that didn't quell his anxiety. It didn't help that he couldn't stop thinking about the night before, growing more shameful every second.

* * *

While walking, Tails had been staring at the ground just ahead of him. Being distracted by his thoughts, he didn't notice the figure stepping into his path. With a whiff of what smelled like fermenting wet dog, Tails stopped in place and looked up. In his path a few feet away was a grey Wolf with patches of brown on its face, of which was possibly dirt. Its brown eyes locked onto Tails. The Wolf wore a dirt brown jacket that covered all but it's ragged tail. He honestly couldn't tell what its gender was.

"Uhm, hi?" Said Tails.

The Wolf was clearly sizing up Tails as it looked all over his body, making him immediately uncomfortable. Tails slowly moved his hands behind his back as if trying to be formal.

"You're not taking this very well, are you?" Asked the Wolf in a scraggy voice.

Tails made an effort not to shift his expression as he figured out who this was. After a moment of fumbling with his wrist communicator, the Wolf spoke again.

"Please don't call your friendo's," said the Wolf, "I'm very shy."

"What do you want?" Asked Tails, pulling his hands into the open.

"I want to help you." Replied the Wolf, "I didn't expect anyone to figure out how to set up the ritual so quickly, you must be clever."

"You mean that Altar in the Ruin?" Asked Tails.

"Yup, the initiation." Answered the Wolf, "You wanted to gain the power that could stand against the Ancients?"

"Actually, I was an accident," said Tails, "I didn't expect this, result."

"Huh," the Wolf muttered to itself for a moment, raising a long-nailed hand to its mouth, "Perhaps that's why you're so distraught by the way civilization is treating you now."

"What?"

"They're disowning you, right?" Said the Wolf, "They fear you?"

Tails' hands started trembling a bit again, and he looked to the ground in an effort to his his intentions.

"Happened to me, even before I discovered this." Continued the Wolf, "But you still have friends, something I lack."

"What, what do you know?" Asked Tails, "I only know what happened last night."

"I know how to thrive," said the Wolf, stepping closer to Tails and holding its arms out, "I can show you as well, and I can show your promising friends."

One of his tails flicked aggressively, but Tails suppressed his contempt and said, "What are you trying to do, then?"

"I want to find promising individuals," answered the Wolf, "Your friend, the popular hedgehog, he'd be a valuable asset to rekindling the old conflict!"

The Wolf was paying less attention to Tails as it rambled on its own train of thought. Tails took this opportunity to carefully reach for the button on the center of his belt.

"I know you're probably skeptical, but I have evidence from the old conflicts. How the tribes operated against the Ancients was brilliant! If you abandoned your petty pursuits of technology, we coul-"

The Wolf was cut off by a yellow beam of rope-like energy wrapping around its body, pulling its arms to its torso. A rather high pitched yelp came from the Wolf as it tried to pull away. Tails tightly grasped the enerbeam with both hands and held the Wolf in place as it struggled. It's brown eyes shakily met with Tails' blue eyes, and a defensive growl exhaled from its sharp jaws.

"You moron!" Chastised Tails, "Why would I listen to you now?!"

"You, are, Making, A, MISTAKE!" Said the Wolf.

Tails responded by loosening a few fingers from one hand to activate his wrist communicator. He quickly said, "If anybody's listening, I found the other lycan! I'm on the beach path toward…"

Tails stopped as he watched the Wolf start trembling, perhaps in fear. He gasped when its eye color shifted to a shade of dark purple.

"DON'T!" Yelled Tails.

The Wolf didn't reply and continued to growl as its form started to grow. Tails' mouth hung ajar and his heart started racing as its figure grew tall under the brown coat. The Wolf started growling more aggressively and stopped pulling away from Tails.

"Tails, you still there?" Asked Sonic's voice from the communicator.

"HELP!" Yelled Tails as loud as he could.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

This took longer to work on than expected. I wound up completely rewriting multiple scenes and trying to make things a bit more concise. I honestly think I still too many drawn out scenes with too little payoff. I mean, over nine-thousand words feels excessive for a single update.

I my next story, when this one is complete, I will probably try to use less scenes in favor of transitions.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read this. If you have any suggestions or criticisms, do comment them. I am still new to this after all.

Have a good day.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5, A Plea For Help**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

"HELP!" Yelled Tails as loud as he could.

Standing out in broad daylight was a towering grey Werewolf partially shrouded by a brown jacket. Its' clawed arms were held down by a rope-like beam of energy. Trying to keep some distance, Tails gripped the other end of the beam with both hands. The Wolf's ragged tail swung fiercely as it slowly turned to him. It gave a stern glare with its' purple eyes, then started to stomp toward him.

With the rope-like enerbeam unable to push the Wolf away, Tails jumped into the air. Spinning his two tails like a propellor, he hovered up as high as possible. The enerbeam in his hands stretched and met its limit, preventing him from ascending higher. The Wolf turned its gaze up to Tails. Despite being partially constrained, it appeared gravely confident.

The beam held taut in the air, Tails hoped flying would keep him out of reach long enough for help to arrive. This hope was dashed as the Wolf bit down on the enerbeam and pulled Tails closer to the ground. He desperately tried flying back up, but the Wolf's jaws caught a closer portion of the beam. Being dragged toward its powerful jaws, Tails released the beam and haphazardly flew backwards into the air.

Faceplanting into the sand and rolling away, Tails hastily looked to the Wolf. The rope-like beam around its arms dissipated and it was already advancing toward him. A yelp slipped from Tails' throat and he scrambled up into the air again. Without room for reaction, The Wolf jumped forward and threw him to the ground. Only a short scream escaped his lungs before being slammed to the ground.

It became clear just how much larger the Wolf was when one of its' clawed arms held held Tails to the ground. Gasping for breath, Tails' mind raced for an escape. His deliberation halted when he saw the stern scowl. Its' dark purple eyes bore into his mind. He screamed and started kicking, but was immediately lifted up and slammed to the ground. The impact wasn't hard enough to break any bones, but the pain got silenced him.

"I-I'm-" Tails coughed, then said, "Please, I-I'll listen…"

The Wolf scrutinized Tails' pained expression for a moment. In the next moment, it was being slammed in the face by a spinning blue hedgehog. Tails gasped, lungs filling with air as the Wolf was hurled back. Sonic landed on his feet next to Tails and took up a defensive pose. As he dropped a brown fast food bag to the ground, his green eyes looked to Tails in concern.

"You okay?!" Asked Sonic.

"Yeah, mostly…" Replied Tails while catching his breath.

Sonic immediately glared up to the large Wolf, which was still recovering from the previous impact. Their eyes locked, Sonic hiding his physical exhaustion behind confident contempt.

"If you can understand me," said Sonic, "Back off, or you're gonna have a concussion soon!"

While Tails lifted to his feet, he suppressed his disappointment in Sonic's unusually weak one-liner. The Wolf backed up a few paces on all fours, then held its ground. It reared down and growled, displaying no intent of retreat.

"Get back!" Yelled Sonic.

When the Wolf lunged forward, Sonic immediately jumped into the air. Spinning into a spiky ball, he launched at it with a homing attack. He immediately felt a hard slap to his side and was sent veering into a nearby palm tree. Opening his eyes, Sonic saw the Wolf charging right at him. He barely ducked out of the way in time to avoid its claw striking the tree, sending shreds of palm wood into Sonic's face.

"Stop!" Yelled Tails.

Sonic glanced up as he dashed away and saw Tails flying at the Wolf with a kick. His shoe struck its shoulder, but didn't have much effect. Before he could fly away, the Wolf swiftly grabbed his spinning tails.

"Ow Ow Ow!" Yelled Tails as he was hung upside down by his tails.

Gritting his teeth, Sonic charged at the Wolf again. He ducked low, and spun at its' hind legs in an effort to topple it. Focused on his attack, Sonic wasn't ready for the soft but dense impact of a Fox slamming into his side. The two were thrown across the beach, rolling to a stop just short of the ocean. Faces buried in the sand, Sonic and Tails coughed and slowly lifted their heads. Towering above them, the Wolf was now grinning like an idiot.

Then a flying spoon suddenly struck its' ear. The spoon fell and landed on Tails' face. Upon narrowing his eyes for close examination, he realized it was silver. Looking completely dumbfounded, the Wolf turned around to see Sticks the badger. A proper cast on her right arm and a box of ornamental silverware at her feet, Sticks prepared to throw a fork.

"Eat silver WereBeast!" Yelled Sticks.

Tails' eyes widened as he realized why Sticks was throwing silverware at the Wolf. Since the spoon on his muzzle wasn't doing anything to him, he determined her weapon of choice would be ineffective.

"W-wait!" Shouted Tails.

Sticks had already courageously lobbed a fork at the Wolf, which landed right into its jaws. Sticks deadpanned and froze as the Wolf slowly crushed the silver fork between its' teeth. With this distraction, Sonic was desperately trying stand up.

"Uh…" Muttered Sticks as she backed away, "Maybe you're weak to arm casts?"

As the Wolf stepped toward her, Tails yelled, "Please! Don't!"

The Wolf hesitated and glanced back at Tails. That's when a large rock suddenly smashed into its' face. It yelped loudly, recoiled, and tumbled backwards. Sonic dragged Tails out of the way just before it fell and crushed them. They then saw Knuckles emerging from the trees, another large rock in hand.

"Great idea Knuckles!" Said Sticks, "When in doubt, use a rock!"

"What?" Asked Knuckles, "That's silver ore. You told me to 'find as much silver as possible'."

"Whatever, just do that again!" Said Sticks.

The large Wolf scrambled to its feet, throwing the rock of silver ore into the ocean. Seeing itself being surrounded, it appeared apprehensive about the situation. Its momentary dip in resolve faded behind a deep growl, as its glare shifted between the four surrounding it. Knuckles pitched the other rock of silver ore, only to watch it get forcefully slapped to the side. The rock's new trajectory veered right at Amy as she ran onto the scene.

"Guys! I got your ca-!" Amy was interrupted by the rock of silver ore slamming into her chest, devolving her sentence to, "Aaack!"

"Sorry!" Said Knuckles.

While Sonic backed away with Tails, the Wolf suddenly turned and charged at them. Sonic threw Tails back and counter charged at the Wolf. Bruised and fatigued, he immediately tripped and stumbled forward, barely catching himself. With the Wolf almost upon him, Sonic threw a meek punch. This resulting in his right forearm being chomped between its' jaws.

"Sonic!" Yelled Tails.

Flinching in pain, Sonic punched the Wolf's left eye. It released his forearm with a yelp, and he recoiled backward. Before either could act again, Knuckles' fist smashed into the Wolf's right temple.

"I got him!" Yelled Knuckles, "Get back!"

Wincing as the stinging pain of his wound manifested, Sonic nodded and swiftly backed up. The Wolf turned and growled at Knuckles. It had not time to react to Amy's hammer flying into its' body, throwing it off balance.

"That's for-" Amy took another heavy breath, "Just now!"

The Wolf stumbled backwards and fell to all fours. Before it could reorient itself, Knuckles punched it in the head again. It yelped and swiped at him, but he dodged backward.

"Go Knuckles!" Yelled Sticks, "Hit em on the left for me!"

Knuckles smiled, but in his moment of distraction failed to notice the Wolf closing in and raising a claw. Right as it struck down at Knuckles, Amy walloped it in the bottom jaw with her hammer. The force propelled it onto its' back, brown jacket rolling off onto the sand.

"Keep it there!" Yelled Tails, pressed the button on his belt, "Amy, use the enerbeam!"

"Right!" Replied Amy.

Readying new beams of rope-like energy, Tails and Amy lassoed each of the Wolf's arms. As it recovered enough to notice this, it growled and frantically yanked on both sides. Seeing Tails' feet starting to drag in the sand, Sonic joined him and pulled on the beam. Knuckles took the lead and grabbed the beam on Amy's side. Then Sticks ran up and held Amy's shoulder, mostly for moral support at this point. The Wolf visibly panicked as it tugged at both sides to no avail, huffing in exhaustion.

"Its losing energy!" Said Amy, "Just hold on!"

"Please, just surrender!" Yelled Tails.

Tails saw the desperate look in the Wolf's eyes. He thought it might give up as it stopped struggling and lowered its' body. However, It suddenly jumped into the air toward the forest. Tails and Knuckles were pulled into the air while Sonic and Amy lost their grip. Knuckles slammed into a tree, while Tails released his grasp and fell to the ground. His spinning tails barely slowed his momentum before he hit the ground. Energy completely depleted, Tails settled on his knees and caught his breath.

"You okay?!" Asked Sonic.

"Yeah, but, i-it's getting away!" Said Tails.

The group looked ahead, seeing the Wolf glance back before bolting away into the forest. Sonic prepared to run after it, but grimaced as he saw the bite mark on his right arm. The wound was mostly a series of indented bruises, but there were multiple light punctures.

"Hey, uh… quick question." Said Sonic, "You think this is bad?"

While Amy and Sticks exchanged a wide eyed glance, Tails looked at Sonic's arm with a dreadfully worried expression. Sonic knew none of them really had an answer.

Knuckles rose to his feet rubbing his head. He then scrutinized Sonic's arm and said, "I've had worse."

"No, I mean, because that was a, uh, Werewolf." Replied Sonic.

"I don't know…" said Amy, "But, I did just get some promising books!"

"I guess we could wait till the full Moon tonight and find out." Said Sonic with a nervous chuckle.

"You don't want to…" Muttered Tails.

The response from Tails left Sonic slightly alarmed. Not noticing this, Tails started formulating a plan of action. He quickly pulled a small, bent swab from a belt pocket. Without asking for permission he dabbed it on Sonic's arm, making him flinch in pain.

"Oh, sorry!" Said Tails, "I should test this."

"How much can you get done today?" Asked Amy, "You're doing like fifty tests already."

"Maybe we should focus on dealing with that Wolf." Said Sticks.

Tails glanced at Amy and Sticks as he swabbed Sonic's wound some more. Examining the swab and sighing, he said, "I really want to fix this today."

"So, do you think I need to worry?" Asked Sonic.

"I don't know," said Tails, "Fifty fifty."

"Why fifty fifty?" Asked Amy.

"They mentioned a ritual, the one that infected me," replied Tails, "So there might be more to it that being bitten."

"Hopefully," said Sticks, "I don't wanna deal with any more Were-pronouns."

"What's wrong with Werehog?" Asked Sonic.

"It's a stupid made-up word!"

"Hey guys," said Knuckles, "Can I keep this jacket?"

Everyone looked at Knuckles, and saw him holding up the Wolf's brown jacket. Sticks immediately ran up and inspected it.

"Based on the smell, that's definitely the one we followed last night." She looked to Tails, "So why'd you run into them now?"

"I think they were trying to convince me to join them." Replied Tails, "But their pitch was… bad."

"My pitch is clearly superior anyway." Said Knuckles.

"Heh, probably." Said Tails, "But I guess this means they can transform at will, making things more complicated."

"Can you do that?" Asked Knuckles.

"I don't want to, so I'm not gonna try." Replied Tails.

* * *

Hovering a long distance away was the eggmobile, avoiding the attention of Team Sonic as they recovered. Attached underneath hung a large cylindrical cage. Sitting inside the vehicle, Dr. Eggman rubbed his chin as he watched the fleeing Werewolf through high tech binoculars. Lowering the binoculars from his eyes, Eggman started pressing buttons on the eggmobile's control panel.

"It really kicked their butts!" Said Cubot, "Why can't we do that?"

"We do that sometimes." Said Orbot.

"I thought it was Shadow that kicked their butts." Replied Cubot.

"Be quiet!" Yelled Eggman, "What part of stealth don't you two understand?"

The two robots shut their speakers off, and Eggman looked back to the scene. Raising his binoculars again, he caught a glimpse of the Wolf as it fled through the brush. A smirk widened on his face as he grabbed the flight controls, racing inland toward the fleeing Wolf.

"Change of plans, fox season's just ended!" Said Eggman, "But Wolf season's just begun!"

"Wait, do we care about hunting laws now?" Asked Cubot.

"No, I'm trying to impress you with my ever improving subtlety and charisma!" Replied Eggman.

"You're always a subtle as the situation calls for, sir." Said Orbot.

"Thank you." Said Eggman.

The eggmobile slowed and lowered, nearly brushing across the forest canopy. Listening with his pitch adjusted auditory sensors, Orbot silently signaled when and where to turn. After a few ominously quiet moments of hovering around, Eggman caught a glimpse of a ragged tail slinking into a patch of tall grass. He was able to hear thud followed by heavy breathing. After a few seconds, it became clear the Wolf had stopped moving.

Slowly approaching overtop the patch of grass, Eggman narrowed his vision to a small targeting screen on his control panel. Finger hovering above a button, he tried to determine exactly where the Wolf was. The Wolf suddenly poked its head out and looked up at the eggmobile in panic. Smashing the button, Eggman watched as the trembling Wolf was caught under the cylindrical cage. He giggled with glee as he reeling up his catch.

The contents of his cage became clearly visible on screen. Surrounded by torn grass and dirt was a ragged Wolf curled into a ball and stared up with wide eyes. Eggman raised his eyebrow, noticing it had noticeably shrunk since its' fight with Team Sonic moments ago. Not too mention it wasn't making any effort to escape, just shivering in place.

"Huh, easier than I thought," said Eggman, "And to think Sonic and his friends couldn't handle this!"

"Maybe it was immensely weakened by the transformation and ensuing battle." Suggested Orbot.

"You mean Sonic softened it up for us?" Said Cubot

"Just let me have this!" Shouted Eggman.

Looking back to the small screen, Eggman saw that the Wolf appeared to be unconscious now. With a small jab to his pride, he lifted the eggmobile into the air and flew away. Caged cargo suspended in the air, Eggman cruised back to his Lair.

* * *

Unaware of the shenanigans Eggman was up to, Team Sonic regrouped and headed back to Tails' Workshop. Sonic left the brown fast food bag next to Tails' work area, figuring he'd eat when ready. Much to his dismay, Tails insisted on drawing a small blood sample from him, _with a needle_. Conceding and consenting to the blood tests, Sonic tried to avoid thinking about the pricking pain.

After inserting the blood sample into the Chemical Analysis Machine, Tails started reviewing the other new test results. As Sonic looked over his wound, Amy approached and insisted on bandaging the bite. Nearby, Knuckles and Sticks began shuffling through the pockets of the Wolf's brown jacket.

"Is there anything in there?" Asked Sonic.

"Gimme a minute." Replied Sticks.

As she investigated, Sonic sat down and watched Amy treat his arm. After a rinse of hydrogen peroxide, she quickly wrapped up most of his right forearm. While he was maintaining an air of confidence, Sonic's anxiety about the situation was slowly climbing. Then a vocal exclamation from Sticks redirected his attention.

"Okay, I found some papers!" Said Sticks.

"What's on them?" Asked Amy.

"Um…" Sticks unfolded one on the table and looked it over, "It's some kind of poorly written language I don't understand."

"So it's English?" Said Knuckles.

"No, I can't read this either." Said Amy, looking over Sticks' shoulder.

They examined about half a dozen folded papers, each in varying degrees of wear and tear. Other than the multiple papers that were walls of strange text, one was a crude diagram of what appeared to be their own Seaside Island. The map had few marks, but appeared to have an icon where the Ruin was dug up.

"Do you think this is what helped Eggman find that Ruin?" Asked Amy.

"Yeah, maybe there's copies." Said Sticks, "I wouldn't be surprised if he had one."

"Hold on," said Sonic, "Eggman's a huge jerk, but I doubt he'd be in cahoots with a Werewolf."

* * *

Inside of Dr. Eggman's metallic citadel Lair, Eggman himself marched down a hallway toward a lone door. Beside the door was a panel with a small screen. It displayed a small, white, barren room with a single bed. On the bed was the Wolf he'd recently captured, of which was slowly waking up. It was immediately alarmed by its location, and began frantically darting around the small room. Chuckling lightly, Eggman pressed a button under the monitor.

"Save your energy," said Eggman through a speaker, "We're not going to harm you, I just wanted to talk."

The Wolf jumped, then looked up at the camera. After a moment of scrutiny, it slowly sat onto the bed. Its' brown eyes stayed locked on the camera. Eggman turned around to see Orbot and Cubot approaching. They pushed a wheeled cart adorned with numerous microwaved pot-pies.

"Alright, you two head in first." Said Eggman.

"Easy enough!" Said Cubot.

"So long they don't maul us." Added Orbot.

Eggman pressed another button on the wall, and the metal door slide open. The Wolf stayed in place, but its' eyes widened and ears perked up as the cart of pot-pies entered. Eggman walked in behind, realigning his faux mustache before giving a welcoming and sinister grin.

"I thought it would be courteous to greet my new guest with a meal!" Said Eggman, "Especially considering the showdown you just had."

The Wolf stared at the cart for a moment, then looked up at Eggman. It rubbed its eyes and said in a scraggy voice, "You're Mr. Eggman, right?"

"Dr. Eggman!" Said Dr. Eggman, "Didn't earn my PhD in villainy to have my title overlooked."

"Hmm." Hummed the Wolf.

"So, why don't you help yourself to-"

Before Eggman finished granting permission, the Wolf leapt up and started devouring the pot-pies. Orbot and Cubot backed up to the door while Eggman waited. He repeatedly attempted to start a conversation, but the Wolf ignored him while shoving more pies into its' mouth. He started tapping his foot impatiently while it made a mess of the room. Eventually, he looked up to see it coughing up crumpled paper pie mold.

"You're quite hungry, huh?" Said Eggman.

"Clearly." Replied The Wolf as it stuffed another pie into its mouth like a heathen.

Eggman mumbled awkwardly for a moment, trying to deduce the best way to break the ice.

"Why did you kidnap me?" Asked the Wolf.

"Well, I uh…" Eggman coughed and shifted his faux mustache, "I watched you do a number on Sonic and his pals back there, so I thought I'd make you an offer."

The Wolf stopped before eating another pie, then said, "That was, disappointing…"

"You did pretty well compared to us!" Said Cubot.

"We win sometimes!" Corrected Eggman, "But before I make my offer, what's your name?"

"Ned." Replied the Wolf apparently named Ned.

"Ned?" Asked Eggman.

"Yes, they said Ned." Confirmed Orbot.

"Ned…" Muttered Eggman in a state of tonal dissonance, "Just Ned?"

"That's all I need." Said Ned the Wolf.

Eggman put a hand to his chin, wondering if he should ask Ned's gender. With a name like that, he's probably a guy. But their voice was very androgynous. Eggman shook his head and decided not to ask, instead saying, "Well Ned, I think we can help each other out in regards to those pests."

"Hmm…" Ned stood up slowly and scrutinized Eggman, "I actually already have what I came for… but if you prove trustworthy enough, I'd like to teach that ignorant Fox a lesson."

"Everyone calls me trustworthy!" Said Eggman, as he subtly pressed a button on his wrist dismissing all of the battle ready robots just outside the door.

"I thought most people called you Baldy McNosehair?" Said Cubot.

"I meant that's what my Mombot calls me!" Shouted Eggman.

"Mom...bot?" Said Ned, "You some kind've social outcast?"

"Well I guess," said Eggman, "But I'm a social outcast on purpose!"

"Alright…" Muttered Ned.

* * *

The strange aroma of fast food met Tails' nose as he summarized reports onto notepaper. Peeking over, he saw the brown bag from Meh Burger Sonic had brought him. Feeling unreasonable hungry, he started eating the various fry products while working. Though he barely listened to the conversation his friends were having, Tails noticed that it started to sound important.

"I dunno Sonic, Eggman's teamed up with all sorts of weirdos before." Said Knuckles.

"Yeah, even Knuckles!" Said Sticks, "We should break into his Lair and find out what he's been up to!"

"I guess we could-OW!" Sonic winced and glared at Amy, "Do they need to be this tight?"

"Probably not," replied Amy, "I'm just being very thorough."

"I wasn't even bleeding much," said Sonic, "You probably didn't need to wrap my arm up this much."

"This doesn't matter!" Yelled Sticks, "We need to take action!"

"I don't have time." Said Tails.

Everyone looked up to see Tails walking over, clipboard in hand. His composure had improved slightly despite having been pummeled by a werewolf. Rereading something from his clipboard, Tails said, "Sonic, I think there's about a seventy percent chance you're not infected."

"Okay, that's good," said Sonic, "But how do you know?"

"I don't, I'm only seventy percent sure," replied Tails, "But I've run tests on my own saliva, as well as the sample from your arm."

"Good, what else do you know?" Said Amy.

Tails flipped a page overtop his clipboard and said, "There's definitely a small difference in my DNA and multiple unusual compounds present in-" He paused and mentally reworded his ramble, "Basically, I think a trigger releases a protein which interacts with something in my cells that induces the mutations."

"Are you tryin' to say the Moon makes you transform?" Asked Sticks, "We already know that."

"No, I'm saying It's not magic," replied Tails, "I'm sure now I can fix this."

"Great!" Said Sonic, "So you're going to whip up a cure?"

Tails fidgeted his hands nervously, "I need time… More than I have today. But maybe I'll be fine."

"How do you figure?" Asked Sticks.

"I looked at the Moon last night, so it may just be a psychological trigger. If I don't look at the Moon, I might be okay!"

Sticks' was clearly doubting Tails while everyone else shifted nervously. Seeing no one else talk, Amy said, "That's kind've a big risk, for all of us."

"Hey, when in doubt, get a second opinion." Said Knuckles.

"Oh yeah, these books!" Said Amy.

Strewn about the other end of the table were four books of various lengths. Amy picked one up and read the cover, _Origins and Inspirations of Werewolf Horror._ She looked up and said, "This one has actual citations and research, so I'll skim through for anything relevant."

"While you do that," said Sonic with a yawn, "I'll go pay Eggman a visit."

"No, go to bed." Said Amy.

"I'm fine!" Said Sonic as he stood up, wobbling and nearly falling.

"Sonic, its fine," Said Tails, "I'm fine. Get some rest."

Sonic looked Tails in the eye, seeing his determined gaze. A sigh escaped Sonic's lungs and he leaned his head down. Walking to the door, he said, "Yeah, okay. Just stay safe."

"He'll be fine, I'm here!" Said Knuckles.

Sonic smiled, then ran out the door.

* * *

With his data organized, Tails stared to get out his chemistry sets. The Chemical Analysis Machine continued whirring as it ran some long form tests. Clearing a surface nearby, he assembled all sorts of glassware, test tubes, burners, and other materials. It had been awhile since Tails dabbled in such hands-on chemistry. When he opened the large cabinet containing all of his liquid chemicals and compounds, a noticeable layer of dust covered the upper shelves.

Indulged in mild nostalgia, Tails prepared everything he thought could be useful. One problem present while working on this was that he had no idea what to create. Most of this busy work was just to boost everyone else's confidence while a program on his computer processed all of the data. It would take a long time to narrow down what he should make to at least fifty options. With everything as setup as possible, Tails tried to determine what he could do in the meantime.

"Hey Tails!" Shouted Amy, "Come see this!"

With nothing else to do, Tails ran over to Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks. The larger book Amy pointed out earlier sat open on the table, showing an illustration and wall of text.

"It says here that Werewolf myths originate back to the time of the Ancients." Said Amy, "Apparently, multiple castle-like fortresses around the world were connected to these myths."

"Like the Ruin!" Said Knuckles.

"Yes!" Replied Amy.

"Huh," said Tails, "That Wolf mentioned the Ancients… they said something about fighting them?"

"There's some theories about that here," said Amy, "The most popular theory is that small tribes, most often wolves, had small and insignificant quarrels with the Ancients. While pathetic compared to the Ancients, these tribes are often credited for inspiring Werewolf rumors due to their feral style of fighting."

"Those morons didn't notice they were really werewolves?!" Said Sticks.

"Well, no," Said Amy, "But that's because the one archeologist who suggested they were actually werewolves was laughed out of all credibility."

"So what's this picture?" Asked Knuckles, pointing at the illustration.

The illustration presented a small group of shadowy figures, probably wolves, staring at the Moon overtop. While the scene was simple, Tails felt a small increase in hope.

"An artist's depiction of the tribal war ritual." Said Amy, reading the line underneath.

"Maybe it is psychological!" Said Tails, "I mean, if it was a tool for battle, they probably used looking at the Moon as a trigger."

Knuckles eyes widened as Tails said this while looking at the illustration. He promptly threw his hand over Tails' eyes and said, "Don't look Tails! The Moon's right there!"

"It's a picture," said Tails, "It clearly doesn't work like that."

"Are you sure?" Asked Sticks as she backed away.

Tails moved Knuckles' hand from his eyes and said, "I'm pretty sure guys, calm down."

"Yeah, that'd be ridiculous!" Said Amy as she quickly shut the book and scooted away from Tails.

Tails frowned at all three of them and waited in place for about ten seconds. Feeling no different, Tails said, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"I just think we need to be careful," said Sticks, "Never know how curses like this affect you."

"It's hardly a curse," said Tails, "It's a fixable mutagenic condition with a lunar trigger."

"How about this!" Said Amy as she stood up between Tails and Sticks, "Tonight Tails will stay inside, and we prepare the Workshop to hold him just in case."

"Oh yeah!" Said Sticks, rolling out crudely drawn blueprint, "I've got an idea, we just need some digging and a solid door!"

Tails looked closely at the blueprint and said, "You wanna put a bunker under my floor? There'll be all sorts of structural problems… But, this is actually pretty good idea!"

Sticks smiled and nodded, then said, "Knuckles, you and Amy are with me, we've got some digging to do!"

Knuckles immediately beamed with a bright smile. Tails heard a buzz from his computer and ran over to his work area. Over the next several hours, Tails worked with what chemicals were available and tested various concoctions. Meanwhile Knuckles dug out a square hole in the floor and Amy removed the dirt. As time passed, Tails' failed concoctions piled up while the construction under the Workshop advanced.

* * *

In the living area of Dr. Eggman's Lair, Eggman and Ned the Wolf sat on opposite sides of a white table. Eggman watched as Ned sat on the ground and scribbled gibberish onto a sheet of graph paper. Repositioning on his red cushioned couch, Eggman picked up a cup of tea drank it all in one gulp. Patting his hands to his knees, he decided to try probing more information.

"So, you're a Werewolf." Said Eggman.

"I'm well aware." Replied Ned, still focused on writing.

"Of course, but how's that work?" Asked Eggman.

"I become big, powerful, and somewhat crude during a full Moon." Replied Ned.

"Uh Huh…"

Waiting for a moment to see if they'd elaborate, Eggman hunched over and grumbled. This smelly mongrel was more focused on its' dead language than him. Peeking side to side, he saw his robots waiting in numerous hiding places. Huffing somewhat confidently, Eggman decided to assert himself.

"I was actually wondering more about the biology of it." Said Eggman, "For instance, did you turn Tails into one by biting him?"

"No," Replied Ned, pausing their writing, "You can't give people lycanthropy like that. That'd be stupid. Why would you want to give it to someone you're trying to kill?"

"I just thought that's how the curse worked," said Eggman, "Then again, I didn't think it existed at all."

"It's hardly a curse," Said Ned, looking up at Eggman now, "It's a tool, It's what old insurgents used to carry out a ceaseless conflict!"

"What do you mean by ceaseless conflict?" Asked Eggman, leaning forward and smirking slightly.

"When I got this power, I learned of a forgotten history!" Ned tapped a finger to their paper vigorously, "With what I found in the old Fortress, I can start living up to the old ones!"

"Well I'm game for anything that might get that needle-rat out of my way." Said Eggman, "Why don't you share more of your deepest secrets while we plan?"

With a stupid looking and giddy smile, Ned stood up and agreed. The two continued to converse while Eggman started drawing up some battle plans. While Ned's rambling became annoying, Eggman was confident he was getting a leg above them in case things turned sour. Over the course of a few hours, Ned rambled on about some amazing war with the Ancients. Eggman caught on to some points, but started tuning it out as he worked. Orbot and Cubot would remember all of it anyway, being their brains are computers.

* * *

A cool ocean breeze rolled over Sonic's face as he opened his eyes. The hammock he laid on swung slightly with the breeze. With a yawn and stretch, he sat up an recollected his thoughts. Gazing outside, He noticed that it was almost sunset. This immediately filled him with dismay. There was something important going on, had he slept through it? After rubbing his eyes, Sonic remembered.

"Crud! No one woke me up!" Shouted Sonic at his hut.

Since his vocal complaint hadn't reached anyone's ears, Sonic jumped to his feet and did a few stretches. Now ready to run, he sprinted across the beach. In mere moments, he briskly navigated his way to Tails' House. He burst through the door without knocking, how rude.

"Tails?!"

Looking around the single room house, Sonic didn't see anyone present. He immediately remembered that Tails had been studying in the Workshop. After slapping himself in the head, Sonic dashed over to the Workshop door. He threw it open and was instantly overwhelmed by all of the projects going on.

The area where Tails had been working before was now ridiculously cluttered with glassware, all filled with numerous colored liquids. Tails was currently looking into a microscope, multiple full test tubes and syringes nearby. Up on a ladder, Sticks was thoroughly taping covers over all of the windows. She held a roll of tape on her arm cast while pressing the drapes into place with her free arm.

"Hey, uh-" started Sonic.

He was interrupted by a loud kerfuffle, and looked to the opposite wall to see Amy pulling herself from a hole in the floor. A welding mask sat atop her head as she said, "Tails, I need a bit more help- Oh hey Sonic!"

Tails looked from his microscope at Amy, then noticed Sonic.

"Hey, seems like I've missed out on some projects." Said Sonic.

"Well it's nothing too much-STICKS!" Yelled Amy abruptly, "GET DOWN FROM THERE!"

"I'm fine up here, thanks!" Said Sticks.

While Amy fumed in stress, Sonic butted in by saying, "Well you could wind up not fine, on the floor, with broken ribs."

"Ugh," mumbled Sticks, "I'm almost done anyway."

Grumbling to herself, Sticks slowly climbed down the ladder. Sonic held the base of the ladder for a moment to calm Amy's nerves until Sticks was on the ground. With that dealt with, Amy looked at Sonic's bandaged arm.

"You feeling okay?" Asked Amy.

"Yeah, just overslept." Replied Sonic.

"What'd you need Amy?" Asked Tails, walking over from his work station.

"I'm just not sure I'm welding it right." Replied Amy.

Before Sonic could ask, Tails and Amy meandered into the square hole in the floor. Following them, Sonic was surprised to see a dirt staircase leading to a partially assembled steel-barred door. He watched silently as Tails inspected the bars and assured Amy she was welding it right. Stepping down closer, Sonic gawked at the whole sight of the mostly constructed underground bunker. Inside, Knuckles was reinforcing the steel beams along the dirt walls, of which held a metal ceiling up.

"So, new extension to the Workshop?" Said Sonic.

"Oh, yeah!" Replied Tails, "Sticks thought underground would be the most secure place, in case I still... y'know."

"That, and we can throw that other Werewolf in here if necessary." Said Amy.

"Cool, cool." Said Sonic while nodding, "So how's progress on your cure bud?"

Following Tails back upstairs, Sonic listened as he summarized all of the information he and Amy learned. Tails seemed rather optimistic that he'd only change if he decided to look at the Moon. When it came to his new tests however, he expressed concern about how little progress he was making. This was evident by the abandoned clutter of failed mixtures strewn all around.

"You might just be burning yourself out bud," said Sonic, "There's only so much you can get done in a day."

"I should have found a solution by now," replied Tails as he looked over his crowded notes, "Maybe if I'd spent time learning more about biology, or-"

"Tails," interrupted Sonic, "You're doing great considering the circumstances."

"Well… I suppose," Tails rubbed his temple, "Maybe I just need to rethink my approach."

"It's not like we have too much time for that," said Sticks, "It's already sunset."

"What?!" Shouted Tails, "But I haven't even-"

Sonic put his hand on Tails' shoulder to subdue his panic. Making eye contact, Tails nodded and took a deep breath. While mentally recuperating, Tails's eyes widened when he looked at Sonic's arm.

"Oh yeah!" Said Tails.

"What is it?" Asked Sonic.

"I tested a sample of your blood against mine," replied Tails, "While it's hard to compare different species, none of the new compounds in me are in you."

"Oh, okay."

"So I'm eighty-five… eighty-six percent sure you're fine!" Said Tails.

"Ah, thanks for letting me know!" Said Sonic.

"But we won't know for sure unless you look at the full Moon!" Said Sticks, "Not that I think you should."

Letting Tails return to his research, Sonic conversed with Sticks about what they'd do that night. She vocalized a desire to take action herself and chase the other Werewolf off the Island. Though Sonic wanted to fix everything before Halloween morning, he knew the team would be down to just three members. Tails would probably stay inside all night, and it'd be irresponsible to let Sticks fight. Saying this didn't quell Sticks' restlessness.

In an effort to keep Sticks out of trouble, Sonic retrieved and set up a small television. Finding an active channel, the Comedy Chimp Show happened to be starting. Sonic then remembered Sticks hated TV on principle. Shrugging, he left it on anyway and went downstairs to help Amy and Knuckles.

When the sound of a terrible introductory pun met Tails' ears, he turned to see Sticks pouting while watching television. Since he was waiting for another batch of data from the computer, he decided to watch for a bit. It was moderately amusing to see the talk show host and his studio dressed up for Halloween. Comedy Chimp, a brown, chubby, middle aged chimpanzee currently wore an orange shirt as opposed to his usual blue. Fake spiderwebs stuck to his desk, and a mist machine spewed fog unevenly over the studio.

"So you're all probably wonderin' who's my guest tonight." Said Comedy Chimp, "Well, it doesn't matter, because they cancelled!"

"Is, is that supposed to be a joke?" Asked Tails.

Sticks shrugged and glanced up to see Tails leaning on the back of a chair. The two focused back to the television as the host spoke again.

"Wait! Don't turn off your TV!" Said Comedy Chimp, "We may be missing our guest, but I've hired an amazing detective to find us a new one!"

The camera turned, and revealed a large green crocodile wearing a black leather jacket and a gold chain Necklace. The studio audience cheered meekly as Vector the Crocodile walked over to a guest chair.

"Vector the Crocodile everybody!" Announced Comedy Chimp.

"Thank you C.C.!" Said Vector, "But to be honest, I think your segway was a bit weak."

As the hosts on the television bantered, Sticks said, "He's in town again?"

"Apparently," said Tails, "Do you think it's because of me?"

"So you're probably wondering why I'm in town again!" Said Vector the crocodile in convenient timing, "Well I had Halloween plans of my own, but when my producers told me Unnamed Village might have an actual monster problem, I knew I had to act!"

"Actually, the Village has a name now." Said Comedy Chimp.

"Oh, my apologies. What is it?" Replied Vector.

"I forgot!" Replied Comedy Chimp.

Sticks and Tails groaned simultaneously, then glanced at each other. Ignoring the aimless banter on screen, Tails said, "What's wrong?"

"Just feeling a bit underappreciated," replied Sticks, "You should probably get back to work though."

"Yeah," said Tails, "Do you suppose we should tell Vector what's going on so he doesn't waste his time?"

"Eh, whatever," said Sticks, "If he finds that other Werewolf for us, I won't complain."

Tails hummed and leaned further onto the chair. Checking a wall clock, Sticks started to get anxious about the time. Staring at Tails as he leaned, she noticed he appeared very despondent. His eyes shifted to see her staring, and the two exchanged worried glances.

"How're you feeling?" Asked Sticks.

"...Fine, nervous." Said Tails, "Do I look fine?"

"Yeah," said Sticks, "But it's getting late, you sure you wanna be wearing your uniform if you change again?"

Hearing that, Tails' gave a pleading look to Sticks. She was a bit thrown off, but kept eye contact. After a few seconds he closed his eyes and sighed, saying, "I guess not…"

Hearing a beep from his computer, Tails jumped up and ran back to his work area. Skimming over the new data, he found that all suggested remedies had a very low chance of success. He'd run out of supplies if he kept making ineffective mixes. It was clear now that he needed more information if he wanted a permanent cure. Still, there was no way he could set up the equipment to run new tests before nightfall. He'd also need to buy new materials, but going outside at this time seemed risky.

Closing his laptop, Tails looked up to see Sticks watching him. Anxiety began to fill his nerves. The prospect of not being able to stop himself again tormented him. Regardless, it was only smart to remove his work belt now, he wasn't even using it. He put his goggles, belt, and wrist device into the locker with his Halloween costume. Looking to his gloves, he decided to leave them on while he tried to work.

While Tails pondered about what to do now, Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles walked out of the new bunker. Everything was assembled and sturdy, they just needed to clean up the hole in the floor. Amy started drilling together some new floorboards to make a trapdoor, of which would cover the hole. As she worked on the carpentry, Knuckles took a break and watched the television with Sticks. Sonic noticed Vector on the talk show, and hummed in tepid surprise.

"What's Vector doing on the Comedy Chimp Show?" Asked Sonic.

"Apparently trying to intimidate the Meh Burger vandal before hunting them down." Replied Sticks.

"You think I should go tell him what's up?" Said Sonic.

"Nah."

"Okay then."

Seeing nothing particularly important on the television, Sonic wandered over to Tails. He was currently printing out blueprints from online for some full body scanners. Watching him analyze the material requirements, Sonic pulled over a chair and sat nearby. A few minutes passed as Tails took note of what all he'd need to build such machines. He eventually noticed Sonic.

"So what's your plan now?" Asked Sonic.

"I'm wasting resources," replied Tails, "So I need to try to get more information for a better baseline in treatment."

"So, you won't have anything tonight?" Said Sonic.

"No, but I should be fine," said Tails, "I hope…"

"I hope so too bud." Replied Sonic.

"But, if I'm not… Please don't watch me, I don't know what I'll do."

"Sure thing." Replied Sonic.

With a few more revs of a drill, Amy attached the trapdoor to hinges on the floor. Wiping her brow, she lifted the door up and back down. Smiling, she appeared content with the finished project. Now the square hole in the floor appeared to be a conspicuous area of floorboards.

"I think this is as good as it'll get." Announced Amy.

"Glad I could help!" Said Knuckles.

Sonic gave a thumbs up, but noticed Tails looking away to his blueprints. Watching for a moment, Tails clearly wasn't doing anything but nervously fiddling with his pencil.

"What time is it?" Asked Amy.

"I dunno," Said Sonic, "Lemme check."

In a flash, Sonic ran out the door. Gazing at the sky, he saw the sun had mostly disappeared beyond the horizon. Turning his gaze, he noticed the Full Moon. It was currently tinted yellow and halfway visible behind some clouds. He gawked at the spooky sight for a moment, before remembering why he shouldn't do that. Sonic then walked back inside and swung the door closed.

"It's nightfall, and the Moons mostly out." Said Sonic.

"Did, did you look at it?" Said Amy.

"Yeah." Replied Sonic.

In a flash rivaling Sonic's speed, Amy's fist slammed into his head. He took a moment to recover while she illegibly rambled at him for being an idiot. Once she calmed down and stopped yelling, Sonic Said, "Well, I'm fine, thanks."

"Good, but you're stupid." Said Amy.

His vision clearing, Sonic noticed Sticks inspecting him up close. He raised his brow in confusion at her mistrust. Seeing her eyes quivering, Sonic realized how scared she was.

"I look fine, right?" Said Sonic.

"Yeah, yeah." Said Sticks, turning her attention to Tails, "How 'bout you Tails?"

"Mostly fine." Replied Tails as he walked over.

"...Mostly?" Asked Sticks.

"I think I'm just nervous, I'm trying not to think about it." Said Tails.

"Okay, let's wait a little bit then," suggested Amy, "Let us know if you think your getting worse."

Tails nodded and walked back to his work area. As the feeling of anxiety filled the air, Sticks position herself near the open trapdoor. Wanting to avoid staring at Tails, Sonic and Amy sat with Knuckles and watched the television.

Eventually, Tails began pacing around aimlessly, eyes locked on his clipboard. A little while passed and he started writing more notes, giving Sonic a bit of hope. While Sticks made no effort to hide her paranoia, Sonic and Amy subtly glanced back every few seconds as the television ran.

Without much warning, Tails leaned over a chair next to Sonic and gawked at the television. With his guest gone, Comedy Chimp was attempting some shoddy slapstick. He stepped on a banana in clear choreography, then slipped in an unconvincing manner. With no audience laughter, he just shamefully wiped it off his shoe.

"Aw, he's not doing it right!" Said Knuckles.

"Slapstick doesn't come to everyone as easy as you, Knuckles." Said Amy.

Hearing a small whine, Sonic turned his head. Tails' brow furrowed as he tried to focus on the television, his thumbs twiddling nervously. A few seconds passed and Tails noticeably twitched, clenching his jaw and shutting his eyes while his two tails spastically flailed. Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles exchanged nervous glances.

"You okay Tails?' Asked Sonic.

Tails' ears lowered and he repositioned his two tails around himself. After he continued looking away without responding, Amy repeated, "Tails, are you okay?"

"I think…maybe…" replied Tails quietly, "No, I don't feel good."

"You mean you're gonna-?" Said Sonic.

Tails faced Sonic, his shaky blue eyes filled with grave fear. In a moment of hesitation, Sonic started to wonder if Tails was just having another panic attack. Amy quickly stepped over and put her hand to Tails' head. He recoiled at first, but then let her check his temperature.

"Oh jeez, you shouldn't be that warm." Said Amy.

"I know." Mumbled Tails, closing his eyes again.

"Okay, you'll be fine," said Sonic, "But we should get you downstairs."

"I know." Repeated Tails, putting a hand to his head.

"How exactly do you feel?" Asked Amy.

"It's like last night," said Tails, "Light headed, feverish, I hear my heartbeat… I… I don't know what to do!"

"Alright, then you should get in the bunker _now_!" Said Sticks.

"I know! I know!" Yelled Tails, covering both his ears, "I just need to... let me fix this!"

Pushing himself up and running back to his work area, Tails started frantically flipping through sheets of notes and data. As Sonic, Knuckles, and Amy followed behind him, they saw his hands trembling while he reached for different vials of chemicals. Amy and Knuckles positioned themselves at different sides, while Sonic slowly approached Tails.

"Buddy, please try to calm down." Said Sonic.

"I can't!" Yelled Tails, "I have to try something!"

While Tails shakily attempted to mix two vials, Sonic reached out and held his wrist. Breathing heavily and shivering, Tails slowly looked to Sonic. His wide eyes pleaded for a way out.

"Okay, bud, try to focus and breath." Said Sonic.

"I-I know, I'm trying!" Replied Tails.

Sticks had shuffled over, standing behind Knuckles and staring at Tails in fear. Seeing him trembling like that panicked her further. She made eye contact with Sonic, but he didn't look ready to be assertive.

"The curse is messing with your head!" Yelled Sticks, "You _need_ to get in that bunker!"

"Please, not yet!" Said Tails, "I-I need time! I don't want to be like _that_ again!"

"Bud, there's nothing you can do." Said Sonic, tightening his grip on Tails' wrist.

Tails looked up again, his eyes now a light shade of violet. He squinted slightly as if trying to make out Sonic's face. He then slowly made eye contact with everyone in the room. A gasp came from Sticks and she stepped back when his eyes met hers. Looking back at Sonic one more time, he lowered his head as tears started to flow down his cheeks.

"Okay, okay…" Mumbled Tails, "I'm sorry…"

Dropping the vial from his hand, Tails pushed himself from the table and walked toward the open trapdoor. He took a few wobbly steps, but then stumbled and fell forward. Knuckles and Sonic quickly caught him by each arm. They lifted Tails to his feet, but he didn't make an effort to support himself.

"Woah!" Said Knuckles, "You okay?"

"I-I can't move..." replied Tails with a slight inflection in his voice.

Sonic gestured at Knuckles, and the two started carrying Tails to the trapdoor. Sticks ran ahead down the stairs and held open the metal barred door. Sonic could feel him gripping his arm tightly with both hands. He heard Tails stammering for a moment as they paced down the stairs, unable to finish any words. When they passed Sticks through the door, Tails was all but paralyzed.

"What now?" Asked Knuckles.

"Just, set him down." Said Sonic.

Leaning Tails down against a wall, Knuckles released his right side. Feeling a sharp pain in his arm, Sonic winced and looked down. He immediately saw sharp nails protruding from Tails' gloves and pressing into his arm.

"Ahh!" Yelled Sonic, yanking his arm from Tails' grasp.

The bandages on Sonic's arm were scratched as he pulled away and jumped to his feet. Seeing no major damage to his arm, Sonic looked back in concern. Tails had moved his trembling arms to his chest and gazed up at Sonic, unable to speak through his chattering teeth. Dark purple eyes flooded with tears, He slowly started trying to hide his face.

"I'm so sorry bud..." Said Sonic.

Stuttering for a moment, Sonic found nothing else to say. He closed his eyes and ran out the barred door, Knuckles following. Sticks slammed the door shut and securely latched it. She held back a gasp, holding her hand to her mouth at this last sight of Tails. Shaking her head, Sticks turned around and ran up the stairs.

Amy closed the trap door behind Sticks, then breathed a heavy sigh. Glancing around the room, she saw Knuckles waiting for a que on what to do next. Sonic was rapidly pacing around with a hand to his face, while Sticks had a mortified look in her eyes as she stood motionlessly. While Amy had mentally prepared for this, it was clear the others had not.

"Its alright guys," said Amy, "He'll be back to normal in the morning."

"Yeah…" Said Sonic, before returning to his pacing.

"Soooo, what do we do?" Asked Knuckles.

"That other Werewolf might be up to something," suggested Amy, "We should probably make sure everyone in the Village is safe."

Sonic and Sticks responded simultaneously with an illegible murmur. Knuckles and Amy looked at each other, both unsure of what to do about the rampant despondency. In a sudden shift of posture, Sonic paced over to Tails' workstation. Amy raised her eyebrow as she saw him looking over Tails' notes.

"Do you think can we do anything for him?" Asked Sonic.

"I don't know," replied Amy as she approached, "There's no way we can just pick up on his research."

"I helped him earlier!" Said Knuckles.

"Yeah, but do you know what's in any of these vials?" Said Amy.

"No." Replied Knuckles.

Looking back to Sonic, Amy saw him gathering and cleanly stacking the scattered pages of data and notes. With nothing better to do, she started picking up the loose glass vials and putting them back in their places. While the two hedgehogs organized the area to the best of their ability, Sticks groaned and sat back against the wall.

"What's buggin' yah?" Asked Knuckles.

"I… I feel a bit guilty." Replied Sticks.

"Why? You haven't really done much." Said Knuckles.

"That's why," said Sticks, "I've been hard on Tails about all this, but haven't done anything to help."

"You can't help it," said Amy, "With your arm and all.

"I've just been scared of him since last night," said Sticks, "But he can't even run…"

"If you're feeling guilty, why not tell him?" Said Knuckles, "I mean, when he'll listen."

Sticks stared ahead for a moment, and replied, "Oh, yeah, I guess I can."

"Glad I can help." Said Knuckles.

Unnoticed by everyone in the Workshop, the small television in the corner was still running. On screen, Comedy Chimp was closing out his show. So it was a surprise when everyone heard someone yell, "Dr. Eggman?!"

"Huh?" Said Sonic, "What who said that?"

"On the tv!" Said Amy.

The four immediately huddled around the television, and saw Comedy Chimp backing away from a group of robots. Currently walking onto screen was Eggman himself, looking to the camera with a confident smirk.

"Sorry, but I need to run an emergency late night broadcast!" Announced Eggman.

"But, uh, you're supposed to meet with the network… first... " Said Comedy Chimp, silencing himself as a Beebot flew closer to his face.

"This is really important, so everyone listen up!" Said Eggman, "I just recovered video of the monster that's been bothering our poor Village!"

"What's his game?" Asked Sticks.

Before anyone made a guess, a small, round and black Flybot landed on top of the television in plain view. On screen, Eggman smiled menacingly as he held a small remote.

"He didn't…" Muttered Amy.

"In fact, its' origin will come as a surprise to everyone, _except Team Sonic_." Said Eggman.

A gust of wind blew across the room followed by a sudden loud crash from the door. Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks only caught a glance of Sonic's blue blur as he charged outside.

"Sticks, stay here and keep an eye on Tails!" Yelled Amy.

"Alright, sure." Replied Sticks.

Hammer in hand, Amy smashed the Flybot, cracking the screen of the Television underneath. Ignoring the collateral damage, she rushed out the door as fast as she could run. Knuckles followed her, but took the time to close the door behind himself. Now alone, Sticks gave a stressful sigh and pulled a chair up next to the trapdoor.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

My lord that chapter title is cheesy.

This chapter has an awful stupid amount of cut content, but mostly because I had a burn out on good ideas for non-integral scenes. I also somehow wound up creating a fake word and using it too much. I finally feel like I've edited this one well enough to be good. I hope this chapter, despite its annoyingly long length, is now enjoyable.

I really hope I can neatly wrap up all of the story arcs in the next chapter under ten-thousand words. I know what I'm gonna write for the finale, I just don't know how wordy it'll be.

As always, please give me feedback on what I've been doing right and wrong in this story.

Thanks for your time,  
-The Secret Person

* * *

 **Review Replies:**

Let me know if you're okay with me posting this section at the bottom here, thank you.

"Cytisus chapter 4 . Nov 15

I'm thoroughly enjoying the plot in this. I love your characterization of Tails, from his reckless scientific curiosity to his almost PTSD behavior after his rough night. I look forward to the rest of the story!"

-I'm genuinely glad to see this response. It makes me feel like I'm accomplishing most of the goals of this story, at least to some extent. Thank you so much for the positive feedback! However, if there's anywhere I should improve this story, let me know!

"SilverLion77 chapter 4 . Nov 15

Poor Tails. This is even worse than the bee incident. Anyways, I don't think this update was too long since I like long chapters"

-I already replied to this one through a private message before I learned most people on this site post them in the story. But again, thank you for taking the time to follow this story. I hope this new chapter is a good read.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6, Conflict of Interest**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

Inside the budget television studio of Comedy Chimp's nightly talk show, Dr. Eggman stood confidently in the middle of the set. The captive audience remained silent in moderate fear as his robots overran the room. Multiple rhinobeetle-esk Beetlebots around the size of people blocked off any escape route. A swarm of Beebots hovered in the air, armed and ready to fire at any troublemakers.

"Now that you're all tuned in and paying attention, I have important video of that monstrous vulpine!" Announced Eggman.

"Hey!" Yelled a beaver police officer, "You're supposed to be under house arrest!"

Eggman gave a deadpan stare, then pressed a button on his wrist. A nearby Beetlebot marched up to the Cop and readied to attack.

"But, erm, I'll let you off the hook this time…" Muttered the Cop.

As Eggman was about to continue his monologue, a loud crash echoed across the studio. Everyone turned to see Sonic the hedgehog standing in front of a smashed door. His fierce grimace summoned a quiet squeak from Eggman. Before they could react, Sonic smashed two beetlebots in a flash.

"R-robots! Attack!" Yelled Eggman.

"You've just made a big mistake Eggman!" Yelled Sonic, despite the swarm of Beebots and three remaining Beetlebots charging at him.

"You're the one making a mistake!" Said Eggman, "I'm the one holding all of the cards!"

A barrage of energy projectiles fired from the Beebots at Sonic's position. The projectiles battered the wood floor directly behind Sonic, who had dashed forward at Eggman. Giving little mind to the robots, Sonic was caught off guard by a charging Beetlebot and was thrown off course. He Skidded to a stop inches in front of the studio audience and glared up to see the robots already circling around him.

"Should I keep filming?!" Asked a Walrus cameraman as he dodged flying debris.

"I don't care!" Yelled Eggman.

With the swarm of robots about to attack him simultaneously, Sonic glanced back and realized he was endangering the audience. A glance forward confirmed that the airborne Beebots were about to fire at him again. With no easy options, Sonic lowered his pose and prepared to try charging past the Beetlebots.

In great timing, a Beetlebot to the right was smashed under Amy's pink hammer. Then a second Beetlebot was tackled by Knuckles, clearing a path. Another barrage of fire pelted the floor behind Sonic as he dashed through the opening. Making eye contact with Amy as she lifted her hammer, Sonic spin-dashed at her. Reacting to his prompt, She batted him at the flying Beebots. He landed on his feet seconds later, followed closely by the sparking scraps of two Beebots falling behind him.

With the few remaining robots distracted, Sonic focused on Eggman. He dashed forward, but was suddenly thrown off of his feet by an explosion. Quickly jumping back up, Sonic saw smoke clearing from a blasted hole in the ceiling. The eggmobile immediately dropped through the hole between him and Eggman.

"Aah! My Studio!" Yelled Comedy Chimp.

"Sorry everyone," said Eggman as he climbed into the eggmobile, "It appears I'll have to share this information some other time!"

"You won't get the chance!" Yelled Sonic.

Smirking devilishly at Sonic, Eggman started flying through the hole in the ceiling. Refusing to accept his retreat, Sonic leapt up and latched onto the eggmobile's side. Eggman scowled at Sonic and started shoving on his face in an effort to thrown him off. Sonic retorted by recklessly smacking the control panel. As they began struggling over the controls, the eggmobile veered away wildly through the air.

"Oh no!" Said Amy, "We have to go after them Knuckles!"

"Oh! I was thinking we wouldn't follow them." Said Knuckles.

"Is that, sarcasm?" asked Amy.

"I'm not sure." Replied Knuckles.

Amy groaned as she smacked one last Beebot from the air. Ignoring the incredibly confused studio audience and crew, Amy and Knuckles ran outside and chased after the eggmobile. It hadn't gotten far when they spotted it careening through the air, brightly illuminated by the full moon above. Then it suddenly wobbled and swerved toward the ground.

"Get off! We're gonna crash!" Yelled Eggman.

Sonic responded by biting the hand Eggman was using to shove him overboard. So Eggman screamed and punched Sonic in the head repeatedly, paying no attention to the rapidly approaching ground. Their squabble was halted as they violently crashed into the dirt. Sonic was thrown rolling onto the ground as Eggman's face slammed into the control panel. The dust slowly settled, revealing a small crater leading to Eggman and Sonic.

"Sonic!" Yelled Amy as she sprinted to him, "Are you okay?!"

"Ugh…" Muttered Sonic, uncurling himself and looking up at Amy, "Been better."

"Why'd you have do that?!" Yelled Eggman.

Sonic turned to see Eggman reorienting himself in his eggmobile. The fact that his fake mustache was noticeably lopsided did nothing to reduce the contempt in Sonic's mind. He quickly jumped to his feet, ignoring the soreness in his legs.

"Why were you doing that?!" Yelled Sonic, "What did Tails ever do to deserve this?!"

"He ruined my plans then spat in my face!" Yelled Eggman.

"Oh come on!" Yelled Sonic, "You can probably use science to grow your mustache back! While that stuff you pulled earlier really messed up Tails!"

"I didn't mess him up!" Shouted Eggman, "He messed himself up, stop blaming me for his problems!"

"I'll blame you all I want!" Yelled Sonic.

"This is exactly the kind of behavior that's reminded me why I've been trying to destroy you all for years!" Shouted Eggman.

"Wait, you were actually trying to kill us all those times?" Asked Knuckles, "If so, you're really bad at it."

"Maybe I just needed some assistance." Said Eggman with a smirk.

Unsettled by Eggman's suddenly calm demeanor, Sonic glanced behind himself. Under the bright moon, the large and grey Werewolf was bounding toward them from the forest. Amy and Knuckles jumped into defensive positions as the Werewolf closed in. Its purple eyes locked intently on Sonic, giving him mild chills.

"You're all familiar with Ned I presume?" Asked Eggman.

"N-, Ned?!" Said Sonic.

"You get used to it." Said Eggman.

"So this was a trap?!" Asked Amy, lifting her hammer readily.

"Well I wanted to lead you three into the forest so the setting of your demise would be festively spooky," said Eggman, "But I can make a compromise just this once."

Knuckles tried to catch and hold the eggmobile down, but Eggman dodged into the air. With Eggman priming the eggmobile's weapons behind them and the Werewolf readying to pounce in front, Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles stood their ground.

* * *

A loud pounding started emanating from the floor, making Sticks jump and assume a defensive stance. She stood still for a moment as an obnoxious and repetitive screaming followed the previous racket. Pressing her ear to the trapdoor, Sticks listened attentively. As far as she could tell, Tails, was scratching at the the metal door.

"Huh." Muttered Sticks.

Determining that the barred door was holding, Sticks lifted her head and started pacing anxiously. Being unable to go save Tails' reputation was one thing, being stuck with this _thing_ neither of them wanted him to be was another. Looking at the trapdoor again, her mind flipped between the memory of her arm being broken and the dreadful look in Tails' eyes.

Sticks was sick of the rampant anxiety and insufferable noises emanating from under the floor. Taking a deep breath, she reached down with her functional arm and lifted the trapdoor. Light pouring down the stairs, she caught a quick glimpse of a clawed paw pressing against the bars. It immediately disappeared into the shadows accompanied with a startled growl. Sticks yelped and fell backwards in panic.

After taking a few deep breaths, Sticks reaffirmed to herself that he couldn't get through the metal bars. She stood up with determination and slowly stepped down into the bunker. Upon reaching the bottom, she could see the shrouded silhouette of the unnatural lycanthropic fox. Despite its' two tails, it was hard to imagine a creature of this size and demeanor being Tails.

"Could you please stop that racket?" Asked Sticks, "I can't be letting you out."

With his back pressing against the wall, Tails snarled at Sticks. She uneasily stepped back a pace, feeling the instinct to defend herself. Then she made brief eye contact and saw the fear in his purple eyes.

"Can you recognize me?" Asked Sticks.

His tails swayed nervously as he started prowling back and forth against the wall. Sticks deduced that he was waiting for her to leave, probably so he could try to escape again. Her mind started running for ideas to calm him down. Not only would a constant racket be unsettling, but she wanted to help him if possible. Hearing the sound of a growling stomach froze her thought process.

"Oh, your hungry?" Said Sticks, "I'm not sure how you'd feel about me feeding you whatever's in your fridge."

After thinking for a moment, Sticks stood up and marched back up the stairs before heading outside. With a short jaunt to Tails' house next door, she found her way to the fridge. There was a surprising amount of unused food inside, mostly consisting of a variety of lunch meat, juices, and leftover meals. Lifting the foil from a large pan of pasta, Sticks grimaced at its burned condition. Smelling it for a few moments told her it wasn't rotten, just poorly prepared. Carrying the large pan with her one arm was somewhat difficult, but she managed to get back outside.

After closing the door behind herself, Sticks looked to the Workshop and saw Orbot and Cubot approaching the front door. With a muffled gasp, she dropped the pan of food and checked the surroundings for more robots. Seeing no battle capable robots in sight, she sighed in relief. As the two hovering robots checked the door, she snuck up behind them.

"Oh, it's unlocked!" Said Orbot as he pushed the door open, "They probably left it open in their rush to the studio."

"How convenient!" Said Cubot.

Sticks slapped herself in the face while Orbot and Cubot floated inside. The she did an impressive combat roll and pressed her back to the wall. Sticking her head in the open door, she watched the two robots as they searched the room. With both of them facing away, she slowly crawled up behind.

"I don't see any traps or werewolves," said Cubot, "Are we in the right place?"

"He said trapdoor," replied Orbot, "And it's right there."

"So what dya think Were-Tails will do once we let him out?" asked Cubot.

"The doctor thinks he'll conveniently act within his vague plan," replied Orbot, "But honestly, I think he'll get aimlessly lost in the forest again."

"Heh, maybe he'll eat the Gogobas!" Said Cubot.

Suddenly, Sticks pounced and grappled Cubot from behind with a war cry.

"AAAH!" Screamed both robots.

"What do you think your doing?!" Yelled Sticks, pulling Cubot back from Orbot, "What's Eggman up to?"

"Nothing, uh, just visiting!" Replied Orbot.

Sticks glared at Orbot and said, "I overheard everything! What does Eggman want with Tails?"

"He wants us to let him out." Said Cubot.

"Just for some simple study," said Orbot, "If you'd let us, Dr. Eggman could even be willing to find a cure."

"No way!" Yelled Sticks, "Get out of here!"

"But Dr. Eggman wants-" Orbot was interrupted by a smack on the head from Sticks' arm cast.

With the presence of physical resistance, Orbot and Cubot surrendered and allowed themselves to be shoved out the door. Sticks followed and watched them for a distance until they were out of view. That scheme foiled, she picked up the food and headed back inside. Opening the trapdoor and walking down the stairs, she saw Tails bolt away from the barred door again.

"It's fine pal." Said Sticks.

Sticks cut out a piece of the burnt pasta. Carefully watching the silhouette of Tails, she pushed it through the barred door.

"I figured you'd be okay with getting rid of this old stuff." Said Sticks.

Tails visibly lifted his head, ears raised as he sniffed the air. Sticks backed away up the stairs and Tails slowly prowled forward. After a few moments of timid posturing, he suddenly snatched up the chunk of pasta and jumped back to the end of the bunker. Walking back down, she observed his posture to be more eager than defensive.

"Good enough, huh?" Said Sticks, "Gimme a few minutes pal."

Cutting the cold pasta into manageable chunks, Sticks shoved the whole pan of food past the barred door. With that done, she picked up the pan and left the bunker. Peeking back down one more time, she sighed and closed the trapdoor behind herself.

* * *

Under the full moon, Sonic and the others were engaged in a desperate fight with the Werewolf apparently named Ned. Eggman was harassing them from the air as the Werewolf swiftly pounced between them. Knuckles had started fighting the Werewolf up close, narrowly dodging the swipes of its' claws. After Knuckles managed to land a hit, the Werewolf reared back and slashed him with a powerful swipe.

"Augh!" Yelled Knuckles as he was thrown backwards.

Amy charged at the Werewolf's flank and raised her hammer. Before landing her blow, A small missile from the eggmobile blasted her off course. Sonic growled in frustration and tried to spin dash at Eggman. This attack was quickly countered by the Werewolf, who leapt and smacked Sonic out of the air. Being thrown rolling across the dirt, Sonic caught himself on his feet. He glared at the Werewolf's stupid smile.

"Hahaha! This is great!" Said Eggman, "You fools are going to be brought down by your own hubris on Halloween Eve!"

"What, like you are every day?" Said Sonic, eyes locked on the Wolf.

"I-! Uh-! Argh!" Yelled Eggman, "Well these missiles aren't hubris!"

Two more small missiles fired from the front of the eggmobile as the Wolf pounced. With these simultaneous attacks from both sides, Sonic jumped out of the way. One missile slammed right into the Wolf, the explosion throwing it off its feet. The other narrowly flew past Sonics face as he dodged again. A furious growl roared from the Werewolf as it coughed up smoke.

"Sorry! I'm still on your side!" Said Eggman, "Just get those rodents!"

"I'm not a rodent!" Yelled Knuckles, lifting back to his feet.

Another missile fired at Knuckles, which he narrowly ducked under. Before he could regain his footing, the Werewolf charged at him again. His quick reflexes allowed him to block its front claws with both of his fists. Struggling in a battle of strength, the Werewolf leaned its sharp jaws closer to Knuckles' head. Right as he was about to lose his footing, Knuckles watched Sonic slam into the Werewolf's side. It was only slightly staggered before facing them both and releasing another growl.

"I don't think its gonna let up!" Said Amy, "We should run!"

"We can't!" Replied Sonic while dodging another swipe.

"I wouldn't let you anyway!" Said Eggman, "Wait, I'm out of missiles…"

Amy noticed Eggman focusing on his controls while Sonic and Knuckles were barely holding the Werewolf at bay. Taking advantage of the opening, she spun and hurled her hammer at Eggman. It impacted the front of the eggmobile, nearly shaking Eggman overboard.

"Sonic, now's your chance!" Yelled Amy.

Glancing to Knuckles, Sonic nodded and dashed to Amy. The Wolf tried to pursue, but took a punch from Knuckles. Amy knelt down and vaulted Sonic into the air over her head. With his momentum and Amy's strength, Sonic spun and projectiled right at Eggman. He slammed directly into the eggmobile, sending it spinning out of the air. Eggman fell with a scream and landed on his face with a thud. Sonic landed behind him, followed closely by the eggmobile with a loud crash.

"Give up Eggman!" Yelled Sonic.

Coughing and lifting his mustache-less face from the ground, Eggman peeked ahead. He chuckled confidently, and Sonic looked up to see Amy pinned to the ground by the Werewolf. Behind it, Knuckles laid unconscious on the ground. Sonic gritted his teeth and prepared to charge at the Werewolf.

"Hold on, I've got the upper hand now!" Said Eggman.

Glaring daggers at the Wolf, Sonic yelled, "Let her go!"

Its reply came as barred teeth and a low growl with a demanding scowl. Amy tried to push herself up, but was pressed harder to the ground. Sonic's eyes darted around as he looked for an opening. Something at the edge of town caught his attention. He didn't have time to scrutinize it further before a rope net launched onto scene at high velocity. The Werewolf turned its head right as the weighted net wrapped over it.

"Huh?! What was-?!" Said Eggman as he scrambled to his feet.

Amy pulled herself away with a grunt while the Wolf snarled and struggled in the net. Sonic took her arm and quickly pulled her away toward Knuckles. The two glanced at the edge of town and saw Vector the crocodile holding the end of a rope attached to the net. Behind him was a small camera crew recording the scene from Vector's perspective. A small crowd of Villagers from the studio slowly congregated behind them, including Mayor Fink.

"So sometimes," said Vector with a huff, "A mystery is best solved by being in close proximity to the nearest television studio!"

"Do you have him trapped?!" Asked Mayor Fink.

"I think so…" replied Vector, tugging on the rope, "Gimme a minute here!"

Sonic ran over, followed by Amy with Knuckles over her shoulder. Seeing the crowd of onlookers and the reality television detective, Sonic yelled, "What are you doing?!"

"My job!" Replied Vector with a strained huff.

Inside the net, the Werewolf's panic started to subside and its struggling became more focused. It started trying to claw apart the net while pushing in one direction with all of its' strength. As the rope strained, Vector's feet started dragging in the dirt and his eyes widened.

"I might need some help!" Yelled Vector.

The television crew looked at each other in a befuddled manner, so Sonic grabbed onto the rope. Amy gently sat Knuckles on the ground and joined him. The three held their ground and the crowd behind them started cheering. The cheers were replaced by a collective gasp as a laser blast severed the rope. Everyone looked over to see Eggman in the grounded eggmobile fiddling with its controls.

"Uh oh." Said Vector, "I'll just, uh... be right back."

"Hey!" Yelled Amy.

Despite Amy's protest, Vector ran away to the rear end of the crowd as everyone started backing up. Looking ahead, she saw the Werewolf tear itself free with its' teeth and claws. It snarled fiercely as it threw the loose rope netting off itself. Amy prepared to run to her hammer and Sonic reared down readily.

"Hehehe!" Laughed Eggman, "They don't stand a chance! Give these Villagers a front row seat to real life horror and tear Sonic apart!"

The Werewolf turned it gaze to Sonic and Amy, then reared down and growled. Amy mumbled nervously as Sonic considered taking her and Knuckles and fleeing. After a few tense moment passed, Sonic and Amy exchanged a quick glance. Both noticed the Werewolf was hesitating despite Eggman's command. When it started to back up toward the woods, they had an idea why.

"I think it's afraid of crowds!" Said Amy.

"What?!" Yelled Eggman, "Bad Werewolf! Attack!"

Seeing the Werewolf snap at Eggman, Sonic started carefully walking forward while saying, "Awe, is the little Werewolf shy?"

The Werewolf backed up faster, then raised its head and howled ear piercingly loud. Everyone covered their ears and Knuckles jumped awake with a startled yell. As soon as it finished howling, the Werewolf sprinted away into the woods.

"No! BAD!" Yelled Eggman.

"What's the matter, can't handle your new pet?" Said Sonic.

"Perhaps not!" Yelled Eggman with furious inflection in his voice, "But I highly doubt yours is behaving any better!"

Sonic immediately glared, and Eggman appeared to regret saying anything. He frantically toggled with the controls on the eggmobile, eventually getting it to slowly hobble into the air. Before Eggman could retreat on his own terms, Sonic charged forward and slammed into him one more time. Eggman's frustrated scream as he spiraled away was somewhat satisfying for Sonic.

"Ugh, what just happened?" Asked Knuckles.

"I think we escaped a horror movie death." Said Amy, walking over and pulling Knuckles to his feet.

"Okay, so, uh…" Said Mayor Fink as he walked forward, "Tail-, He's still on the loose."

"That's not him." Said Sonic, "That's some other wolf."

"What do you mean that's 'not him'?" Asked Vector, parting from the small crowd.

"Long story, no time." Said Sonic.

"Now hold on, I was hired by Mayor F here to catch that critter!" Said Vector, "I'll need to question all of you."

" _You_ called Vector?!" Yelled Amy.

"Of course!" Said Mayor Fink, "Why wouldn't I do what's necessary to protect the town?"

"Listen here you little prick," said Sonic, "You pick this of all times to get involved while doing nothing about Eggman?!"

"Well, only because this situation was a conflict of interest between you and, uh…" Replied Mayor Fink.

"How about we discuss this tomorrow, _in private_." Suggested Amy.

Mayor Fink turned his head and saw all of the confused stares from the crowd and camera crew. Acknowledging the awkwardness of this setting, he said, "Yeah, that's a good idea."

Mayor Fink promptly started telling everyone to not worry about the monster they just witnessed, of which was still on the loose. Sonic, Amy, and a recovering Knuckles stared heading back to Tails' Workshop. Vector the crocodile pestered them for a bit with questions, but backed off when told to bother Eggman about it. Walking briskly across the beach, the three of them attentively watched their surroundings incase the Werewolf returned. This proved unnecessary, as they made it back to the Workshop without any more interruption.

Upon entering the door, Sticks jumped to her feet. She was immediately concerned about the scratches on all three of them. So Sonic explained what happened while Amy examined the claw marks on Knuckles' body. Her anxious posture shifted to a slightly more calm stance as the scenario was explained to her. She then brought up that Eggman's lackey robots attempted to release Tails, but she chased them off.

"Uh huh." Muttered Sonic, "So Tails hasn't made too much of a fuss?"

"Not since I fed him." Said Sticks.

"Okay… what'd you feed him." Asked Sonic.

"There was a large pan of some sorta pasta in his fridge, it looked leftover." Said Sticks.

Sonic' eyes widened and he almost gagged, "He, he ate that?"

"Yeah, it was just a bit overcooked." Said Sticks.

"It was worse than that," said Sonic, "I'd never tasted anything so repulsive in my life!"

"Did you two try to cook or something?" Asked Amy.

"About a week ago…" Said Sonic with a shudder, "We vowed to never talk about it."

"Well, hopefully Were-Tails won't get food poisoning." Said Amy.

"Please don't say that." Said Sonic, "Just say Tails."

"Right, sorry." Replied Amy.

* * *

Dr. Eggman trudged through a door into the living area of his Lair, Orbot and Cubot floating behind him. He was now wearing an even more fake plastic mustache, of which was super-glued to his upper lip.

"You two nitwits couldn't sneak past that incapacitated Badger! That stupid Werewolf ran away! The eggmobile needs repaired!" Yelled Eggman, throwing his hands into the air, "We've accomplished nothing tonight!"

Orbot and Cubot waited for Eggman to finish his furious rambling while following him to a couch.

"Sir, we still have the footage of Tails becoming the Werefox." Said Orbot.

"Yeah, let's send some of that blackmail you've been fond of!" Said Cubot, "I can start printing the black envelopes!"

"Ugh, tarnishing the two-tailed goober's reputation wasn't the point," said Eggman, "I got my hopes up that my brilliant trap was finally working! But that Were-mongrel screwed it up!"

"Where is Ned, anyway?" Asked Orbot.

"I don't know!" Replied Eggman, "Probably cowering in the woods."

Grumbling quietly to himself, Eggman picked up a remote and turned on his wall television. On screen, Soar the Eagle was in the middle of a news segment on the recent fight.

"So, was it the same creature you saw last night?" Asked Soar.

The camera centered on Zooey the fox, whom was holding a bag of groceries that appeared to consist of candy. With a confused look on her face, Zooey replied, "I wasn't there, why are you asking me?"

The camera panned back to Soar as he said, "Well, Uh, we heard…" Soar then faced the camera as if she wasn't there, "Other witnesses have said that Dr. Eggman was helping the creature as it battled Sonic! We'd bring you a statement from Eggman about these accusations, but on account of him being evil we're assuming and reporting that they're true."

Throwing the remote at the screen, Eggman jumped to his feet, yelling, "They didn't even say it was _my_ plan! I wasn't helping that mongrel! It was working for me!

"Do you want us to prepare a press release, doctor?" asked Orbot.

"No need!" Replied Eggman.

Turning off the Television, Eggman ran to another end of the room. Typing on a control screen on the wall, he activated a secret panel. Part of the wall separated, and an advanced chemical analysis machine rolled out. Eggman detached a tube from a glass vial and smirked with determination.

"While it screwed up my plan tonight, that Were-mongrel wasn't completely useless." Said Eggman as he worked on the machine, "The hair they left behind should be enough for me to figure out how lycanthropy works! Then I can control this infestation at my will! MuaHaHaHaHaah!""

As Eggman uttered a whole-hearted evil laugh, Orbot and Cubot exchanged a worried glance. Both knew that he was about to pull a maniacal all-nighter, which was never fun for them.

* * *

With the Workshop's security system active, Team Sonic prepared to get some rest. While the Workshop did not have any beds, Amy set up some sleeping bags and pillows on an open area of the floor. Sonic decided to stay up and keep watch. It only seemed pragmatic to have someone alert while a Werefox was trapped in a bunker below.

The hours of the night passed uneventfully, stressing out Sonic. He'd quietly check the windows and under the trapdoor at intervals. Each time he opened the door, he heard Tails run from the barred door and out of sight. Knowing Tails was still there calmed his nerves, but Sonic couldn't build up the will to go down. When not actively checking things, he was sitting above the trap door.

It was a surprise for Sonic when he woke up. Realized he'd passed out, Sonic jumped to his feet and scanned the room. Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks were all still asleep in their corner. Everything else was as it was left earlier. Breathing a heavy sigh, Sonic walked over to a window and checked outside. Seeing the dimly lit blue sky and very early sunrise, he gasped.

Without hesitation, Sonic dashed to the trapdoor and opened it. With hesitation, he braced himself and slowly walked down the steps. The bunker was devoid of noise on his way down, which started worrying him. Once in front of the barred door, Sonic stared through the darkness. After of moment of squinting, he could make out the shape of Tails' tails. Sonic turned his head to the lightswitch, considering flicking it on for a better look. Then he heard someone's voice.

"Hey Sonic…" muttered Tails, his blue eyes peeking from the obscured darkness.

"Tails!" Replied Sonic.

Frantically fiddling with the door, Sonic grunted as he pried it open. In the next second, he'd already dashed over and knelt down next to Tails.

"W-wait, I'm not-!" Said Tails.

Tails' objection was ignored as Sonic pulled him into a hug. He was immediately surprised by how warm Tails' body was, not too mention he was almost completely limp. His mind started racing with worry, until he felt one of Tails' arms wrap around and return the hug. Sonic held him tighter for a moment, until he heard Tails stuttering.

"I-I'm still, kinda…" Tails took a few fast breathes, "Not all back…"

"I don't care." Said Sonic, "I'm not locking you back up."

"...Thanks."

Feeling Tails make an effort to move himself, Sonic released the hug and leaned him against the wall. Despite the dim lighting, he could make out more of Tails' complexion. He was still covered in ragged brown fur as his ears and tails twitched every so often. Sonic watched silently as Tails lifted and examined his own hand, furrowing his brow at his clawed fingers. A discontented sigh exhaled from Tails' lungs as he lowered his arm.

"How do you feel?" Asked Sonic.

"Achy, nauseated, tired… kinda crazy…" replied Tails.

"You'll feel better soon." Said Sonic, patting his shoulder, "You seemed awful scared last night."

"Sorry…" muttered Tails, "I-I was overreacting..."

"It's fine, I understand how scary it must be." Said Sonic.

"Maybe…" Trailing off, Tails started exhaling slowly and leaning back, muttering, "I'm... I'm gonna sleep for a bit…"

"That's fine," said Sonic, "Let me get you upstairs and-"

"No!" interrupted Tails, locking eyes with Sonic, "I'm staying… until I don't feel it anymore."

"Feel what?" Asked Sonic.

"I dunno," replied Tails, "It's… I can't think straight. I feel like… I could go mad again any moment."

"What? You're not mad!" Said Sonic.

"No, it's… It's from the lycanthropy." Said Tails.

"Oh," said Sonic, "Well, I'll stay here too."

"Okay." Said Tails.

While Tails laid on his side and closed his eyes, Sonic leaned against the wall beside him. With the reduction in stress, he found himself start drifting back to sleep as well.

"Sonic…"

"What?" Asked Sonic.

"That sucked, being stuck in here," said Tails, "But, tell Sticks I'm glad she stopped me from getting loose."

"Will do, but you can do it yourself if you want." Replied Sonic.

Not hearing a response, Sonic looked down to see Tails fast asleep. He smiled, then drifted to sleep himself.

* * *

An alarm started blaring, making Eggman drop a glass test tube. He jolted to his feet and ran from the cluttered work area. Running to the main control room, Eggman typed onto his control panel. The red-tinted screen covering the wall displayed live video of the front door. Hunched over and dripping with water, Ned the Wolf was pounding his fist on the door.

"Jeez, did he swim here?" Asked Eggman.

"Probably." Said Orbot.

"Orbot, Cubot, let em' in, I'll hide test station!" Commanded Eggman.

With his two robotic minions heading to the front door, Eggman ran back to his work area. After quickly reorganizing some glass containers of colored chemicals, he pressed a button on the wall. The whole work area retracted into the wall, and two panels slide closed behind it. The area now looked like any other portion of the Wall. As soon as this was done, he heard rapid wet stomping approach from behind.

"So, you came back?" Said Eggman, turning to face Ned.

Now standing in the center of the room, Ned was dripping water from his ragged fur. Staring with contempt at Eggman, they said, "Last night didn't work."

"Clearly!" Said Eggman, "You had to go and retreat, despite the fact we almost had them!"

"What'd you expect me to do?!" Yelled Ned.

"Defeat Sonic! Not get stage fright in front of those useless Villagers!" Shouted Eggman.

"Did'ya expect me to eat them or something?!" Retorted Ned, "I don't need them dead, I need more allies!"

"They're not gonna join you." Said Eggman, "In fact, that two tailed fox is working on curing himself."

Ned's eyes widened and their teeth barred, "It's impossible!"

"Maybe, maybe not." Said Eggman, stroking his plastic mustache, "But I'm the most welcoming face you'll see on this Island, so you should treat me with more respect."

Ned's furious glare shifted to a curious stare, then they said, "Right, respect… Even if that fox doesn't want to join me now, I know who can convince him."

"I don't see your point." Said Eggman.

"I have someone to introduce you to." Said Ned.

* * *

When Sticks awoke and saw the trapdoor left ajar, she let out an alarmed scream. Forcing Amy and Knuckles awake, she pointed out the source of her distress. The three of them shared a moment of confused panic, before noticing light peeking through the front door. Straightening her head quills for a moment, Amy calmly walked over to the trapdoor. Knuckles slogged behind her, followed by a nervous Sticks.

Upon getting to the bottom and turning on the lights, they saw Sonic and a frazzled but normal Tails fast asleep against the wall. Sonic shot awake, then explained why he'd left the door open and passed out. Their conversation woke Tails, who began mumbling irritably. After noticing he'd new new gloves and shoes again, Tails grumbled more audibly.

Once Tails had reoriented enough to walk, Sonic and Knuckles guided him upstairs. Amy left the Workshop while Knuckles retrieved him his gloves and winter boots. Sonic and Sticks explained what happened overnight, Tails listening while inspecting himself in a mirror. Despite being reassured Eggman didn't successfully out him to the Village, Tails seemed very grouchy about the situation. Tuning out his friends, he focused on hastily writing notes about his overnight condition.

Watching Tails work, Sonic noticed him lean over and rub his torso in pain. Tails quickly reassured him that he was fine. That's when his eyes widened. With no time to spare, Tails bent over and puked into a waste bin filled with expended formulas and chemicals. As Sonic, Sticks, and Knuckles rushed to him, Tails tried reassuring them he was fine again, before gagging some more. Knuckles nervously patted Tails' back while his body tried to puke despite an empty stomach.

"Are you done?" Asked Sticks.

"I think so," said Tails, holding himself over the waste bin, "I feel a bit better actually."

"Yeah, that's how nausea usually works." Said Knuckles.

Tails tried to stand up from the waste bin, but stumbled and started falling backwards. Knuckles caught him by the arm and pulled him up. After balancing for a moment, Tails tried to stand on his own again. Despite his best effort, he wobbled and had to grab hold of a table before falling forward. Unable to support himself, Tails slowly gave a worried look to Sonic.

"What's wrong?" Asked Sonic.

"I don't know," replied Tails, "I feel… weak."

"Oh, you need some nutrition!" Said Knuckles, "Can't stop eating when you have stomach flu or food poisoning."

"How do you know?" Asked Sticks.

"I know how to stay healthy." Said Knuckles.

Focusing back on Tails, Sonic and Sticks noticed he was staring ahead in thought. Rubbing his torso again, Tails said, "I don't think I should eat, the lack of energy could prevent me from slipping again tonight."

"Why?!" Said Sonic, "We were over this yesterday!"

"Yeah, starving when you're that weak won't end well." Added Sticks.

"I don't care! I won't let it happen to me again!" Yelled Tails, barring his fags slightly.

"Buddy, I know this is hard on you," said Sonic, "But it'll be worse for you unless you eat something."

" _You_ didn't have to experience being forced to go insane!" Yelled Tails, releasing himself and falling to a chair, "It's _so_ much worse when you know what's happening and can't stop it! Then forgetting where I am! Forgetting why I'm so scared! Forgetting your name when I wanted to call for help!"

Sonic was taken aback by this furious recounting of emotions. Tails tried to continue his rant, but stammered into frustrated illegible grumbling. As he gave up on talking, Tails leaned forward and released a muffled scream into his hands. That's when Sticks put her free hand on his shoulder.

"Tails, the _only_ way you can prevent that now is by taking care of yourself!" Said Sticks, "At the very least, let Sonic and the rest of us help you!"

"You don't…" Tails' glare faded as she made eye contact, "I'm sorry Sticks. You warned me, but like an idiot I just-"

"I'm over it," said Sticks, "My arm may be kinda broken, but I'll heal."

Tails sat still in thought, wandering eyes gazing at his failed formulas. With a stubborn huff, he tried to push himself up to no avail. After he fell back into the chair, Sonic held his hand out.

"Thanks," Said Tails quietly, "Can you help me to my house?"

"Of course."

* * *

Out somewhere in the dense Island forest, Dr. Eggman exited his newly repaired eggmobile. He was beckoned forward by Ned the Wolf, who hobbled slowly ahead. Deciding to keep his distance, Eggman watched as Ned picked up and moved multiple large leaves, revealing a small cave entrance. He hesitated mentally about following Ned inside, but had no time to object. As Ned disappeared inside, Eggman sighed nervously and crawled in.

"Heh, nice cave," said Eggman, turning sideways to fit into the cave mouth, "Reminds me of Shadow's place, but this one's definitely better."

Trudging through some mud into an open yet darker area, Eggman raised an eyebrow at Ned's silhouette. Despite the less claustrophobic environment, something was very off putting. A light suddenly emanating from an old electric lamp, illuminating the rather ordinary cave. With his finger above a secret panic button in his gloves, Eggman grew suspicious of Ned's intentions.

"Doctor," Said Ned, back turned as he faced an opposite wall, "You ever met an ancient being before?"

"Actually yes," replied Eggman, "Fella named Lyric, kind've a jerk."

"Hah!" Said Ned, stepping aside, "Well, this old Alpha is very cordial."

Eggman put forth his best effort to not show how much he thought Ned was a psychopath now. Slouched over on the ground and covered by a ragged black cloth was a large, partially mummified werewolf Skeleton. It's skull was large and fanged, stuck limply on a series of exposed neck vertebrae. Eggman almost hit his panic button while making this observation, but the curiously sinister part of his mind stopped him.

"So, this is your friend?" Asked Eggman, voice trembling slightly.

"No." Said Ned, "It's an old messenger, destined to keep its ancient conflict burning to this very day!"

"Huh, interesting…" Said Eggman, "This Skeleton will help deal with Tails how?"

"Only it remembers how important the war was and is," said Ned, "It should know what to say to him."

"Uh Huh," said Eggman, "Say, do you hear it talk to you, then?"

"No, but it writes." Said Ned.

Eggman stepped back a few paces closer to the cave's exit. Ignoring this, Ned reached out and picked up one of the Skeleton's bony paws. Without any input, its fingers moved and outstretched a single claw. Eggman let out a small squeak, but quickly doubted what he saw. With Ned still holding its wrist, the claw lowered to the dirt and slowly scratched out a line of a familiar unreadable text.

"Hmm," said Ned, "It's curious of you, Eggman."

"That's nice…" said Eggman, "But I should probably get back to my plan while you do… this."

Ned's eyes widened as they said, "Oh! You think I'm mental, don't you?"

"Not at all!" Said Eggman, "We all have weird methods of brainstorming! I have designing killer robots, and you have talking to a corpse!"

"Well, I have to make you an offer on its behalf." Said Ned, "Use your science, and help us reform a new clan! Then you may be rewarded with our power!"

"Hm, by 'reward', do you mean giving me lycanthropy?" Asked Eggman, curiosity compelling him to further ask, "How?"

"Easy," said Ned with a toothy grin, "Just takes a bit of my blood, this one's blessing, and an electric charge."

"Well, that's good to know, especially since that's the last thing I wanted to know." Said Eggman, pressing the panic button, "But I'm going to have to decline contracting your thousand-year old rabies."

With that insult, Ned's face shifted into a scowl as they said, "You'd spit at this opportunity and run back to your machines?! Perhaps you just need a taste of this power you're refusing!"

Ned stood up and Eggman backed up, bashing the panic button in his glove repeatedly. Before either of them could make a move, the Skeleton reached out and took Ned's arm as its head shot up. It would've locked eyes with Eggman if it had any.

Seeing this, Eggman screamed, "YEAH OKAY I'VE GOT THINGS TO DO NOW BYE!"

With no effort made to stop him, Eggman scrambled through the narrow cave exit. He was immediately picked up by the eggmobile and an escort of Beebots. As he raced to his lair, Eggman considered giving up on his plans and hiding until this whole werewolf thing blew over. However, his hubris compelled him to make one last power move for the holiday.

* * *

While Amy professionally prepared breakfast in the small kitchen area of his house, Tails finished strapping his uniform back on. Glancing at himself in the mirror, Tails appeared normal enough, visible canines and some frazzled fur aside. Now overwhelmed by the aroma of cooked sausage and eggs, Tails eagerly beckoned Knuckles to help over to the kitchen. They passed Sonic and Sticks who were eating next to the television.

Amy was stacking numerous eggs and sausage patties onto a plate when she heard Tails approach. He sat on a stool on the opposite side of the nearby counter, rocking back and forth eagerly. He was swiftly accompanied by Knuckles, who mimicked that behavior. Amy chuckled as she handed them both bountiful plates of food.

Amy and Knuckles were astonished by how quickly Tails wolfed down his food. Knuckles then tried to eat faster in a competitive manner, much to Amy's dismay. As Tails finished his plate, he appeared puzzled by Knuckles' table etiquette. Noticing he'd eaten his whole plate in almost thirty seconds, Tails' face filled with embarrassment.

"Hungry much?" Said Amy.

"Sorry." replied Tails.

"It's fine, you clearly need the nutrition." Said Amy.

"Thanks…" Said Tails, eyes locked on the rest of the leftover sausage patties.

"Help yourself, everyone's had their share." Said Amy.

As Tails hastily scraped more food onto his plate, Amy brought her portion over to Sonic and Sticks in front of the television. A little while passed as everyone relaxed and Tails mentally recuperated. His shivering had noticeably lessened and his posture improved. Once he was onto a third plate, Tails started focusing on his notes from the previous night. While chewing and reading over a page, he started organizing the main points of data he'd found so far.

Over by the television, the other four were in a generally lighter mood. The morning news had started recapping footage of their fight from the previous night, reminding Sonic of a detail that was bugging him.

"Eggman may have set that up as a trap," said Sonic, "But I think we should find and destroy his footage of Tails."

"And we should set up anti-Werewolf traps to catch that grey fella!" Added Sticks.

"Its name is Ned, apparently." Said Amy, "And that probably won't be necessary, he's afraid of crowds and it's Halloween."

"So what, you're satisfied assuming it ran off?!" Yelled Sticks.

"I just think it'd be healthy for us to enjoy the holiday," said Amy, "Eggman's probably almost out of his weekly supply of robots by now, maybe he'll wait a few days before trying something again."

"Yeah, you guys should go trick-or-treating with me!" Said Knuckles.

"How about _after_ breaking into Eggman's lair." Said Sonic.

Steadily walking over on his own, Tails said, "As much as I don't want everyone to know about my problem, I'd rather stay here and work on fixing it."

"Well, the three of us can handle Eggman!" Said Knuckles.

"Unless Mr. Ned the Werewolf is there with him," said Sonic, "Then we might die."

Almost on cue, the news replayed footage of Knuckles being knocked out by the Werewolf. Everyone mulled nervously about their chances for a moment.

"Oh! I still have a Flybot! We could hack into Eggman's network!" Said Tails.

"Wait, we can?" Asked Amy, "Have you done that before?"

"Once or twice back when I cared to autopsy his robots," said Tails, "If he hasn't deactivated it, I can-"

Tails stuttered when a loud howl emanated from the television. A glance to the screen revealed that the news broadcast was playing the part of the fight just before the Werewolf fled. As the recording ended, Tails appeared very perturbed while trying to get back on topic.

"I-I mean, I can, i-if not-, uh... Hmph." Muttered Tails, covering his mouth.

"You okay?" Asked Amy.

"I think he's resisting howling back," said Sticks, "I get that urge all the time."

Tails nodded his head, lowering his ears bashfully. Seeing him embarrassed by this, Sonic got an idea.

"There's nothing wrong with that, we all need to let out a good howl every so often!" Said Sonic.

The news team started restarted the same moment of the footage for emphasis on how fitting this Monster was for Halloween. Tails covered his ears and pouted as the howling replayed. Tails jumped in surprise when a second howl suddenly emanating from Sonic, who took up a goofy pose. A snicker escaped Tails' mouth and he released his ears. Seeing this, Knuckles joined with his own impression of a howl, quickly followed by Sticks' very convincing one. Tails keeled over and burst into a laughing fit as the three ran out of breath.

"Aahhh!" Yelled Amy, uncovering her ears, "you should warn-!"

She was interrupted by Tails, who yelled with a screeching and ear-piercing howl. Despite feeling like their ears were being damaged, Sonic, Knuckles, and Sticks joined in unison with their own impressions. The generally unpleasant but very jovial quartet of howling rang across the house for a few solid seconds. It then devolved into a four way laughing fit as everyone ran out of breath. While everyone else gasped for air through their laughter, Amy lifted herself from the floor.

"If I just lost an eardrum you're paying my medical bills Sonic!" Yelled Amy.

"W-why me?!" Stammered Sonic, still giggling.

"T-that was so silly!" Said Tails, a goofy grin on his face as his tails swayed playfully.

"Your howl could use some work though." Said Sticks with a cheeky grin.

"Yeah, Sticks' was more convincing, yours was more like a high-pitched scream." Said Knuckles.

"Hey, I'm the one with lycanthropy!" Replied Tails, "That was the most authentic howl you'll get!"

"Feeling better Tails?" Asked Sonic.

"Yeah, thanks guys."

Once everyone had calmed enough to refocus on the task at hand, Tails reaffirmed that he had a good chance to hack Eggman's database. Everyone followed him to the Workshop where he set up his laptop and retrieved multiple wires. After plugging the wires into his computer and opening an infiltration program, Tails beckoned everyone around a cabinet. He unlocked and opened a drawer, pulling out the jar with the captured Flybot inside. It's red eyes lit up, telling Tails it was active and paging Eggman.

"Yeah, we should destroy it just to be safe." Said Tails unnecessarily loud.

He looked at Amy expectantly and she got the cue, saying, "Oh, yeah! It may still be able to hear us from in there."

Tails subtly moved the jar so the Flybot couldn't see the soundproof label on the cabinet. Placing it on the table near his laptop, he said, "I'm going to EMP it with these plugins, that'll be less messy."

"Well, uh, yeah…" Mumbled Sonic, getting an idea, "But, what if it already heard about my _secret injury_?"

"Injury?" Said Sticks, "I mean, oh no, Sonic! You just incriminated yourself in front of the bug!"

"Aw darn!" Said Sonic, snapping his fingers, "Hopefully he can't _see_ how bad it is though!"

Taking the verbal bait, the Flybot had its red eyes locked on Sonic. In this moment of distraction, Tails silently loosened the jar's cap. In an instant, he pulled off the cap with one hand and stabbed a wire into the Flybot with the other. The Flybot fluttered in alarm, but stopped as a small jolt of electricity disabled it, leaving it limp in the jar. The other four watched curiously as Tails moved rapidly and started attaching more wires to the disabled Flybot.

"You got it?" Asked Sonic.

"Hold on…" replied Tails, typing commands into his laptop, "Network is… online!"

With a giddy hop, Tails started quickly searching through a trove of unfiltered data. Using the computer program to isolate video files recorded the night before, he quickly found his target. A long moment passed as everyone huddled around Tails and watched a progress bar fill.

"Aha!" Said Tails, "Copied and deleted!"

"Awesome!" Said Sonic.

"You sure that's it?" Asked Sticks.

Tails responded by opening the file and checking multiple points of the video. Seeing it get to a point were the other Flybot followed him to the basement, Tails hastily closed the video.

"Yep, that's it." Said Tails.

"You look a bit flustered." Said Knuckles.

"I have weird feelings about watching that in third person." Replied Tails.

"Wait, is there anything else you can do right now?" Asked Amy.

"Yeah, let's look through Eggman's photo gallery!" Said Knuckles.

"We _don't_ wanna do that." Said Tails, "But maybe… woah!"

"What is it?" Asked Sonic.

Opening a new window, Tails' eyes widened in surprise as he looked at a folder full of biological test results. A second of reading the reports confirmed his suspicions, Eggman had done his own tests on werewolves. This made sense now, having recently learned Eggman was working with that Werewolf apparently named Ned. What made less sense was the mechanical blueprints attached to this folder.

"Control c, control v…" muttered Tails, entering the corresponding commands, "Aaaand we've been timed out."

"What did you just put on your computer?" Asked Sticks.

"Eggman's werewolf research." Said Tails.

"Oh! Do you think he has a cure?" Asked Sonic.

"Uhh…" replied Tails, eyes skimming the report summaries, "No, he's only extrapolated about seventy percent of what I already know."

"So then why's he doing that research?" Asked Sticks, "I bet he's got some kinda ulterior motive."

"I can hazard a guess," said Tails, "There's a blueprint here, it's a mind control device for large feral creatures... That Presumptuous Prick!"

"Calm down buddy," said Sonic, "There's no way he'll be able to use that on you."

Now that they had dealt with that problem, everyone breathed their own sigh of relief. Even Tails, before he remembered that he was still very much uncured. His mind started processing everything he knew about his condition. It was clear that his earlier assumption of a psychological trigger was false, but that raised many questions. Recalling his earlier plans, Tails promptly finished his list of parts to order.

Turning to the rest of Team Sonic, Tails said, "So, I think you guys can get ready to celebrate Halloween tonight. Even if I don't cure myself, you can take shifts guarding the Workshop."

"That's a solid plan Tails!" Said Amy.

"Do you need any help here?" Asked Sonic.

"Well, if someone could help me lift things here, and someone else could buy the parts I need-"

"Of course!" Said Sonic, "It's not like there's ever a shortage of high-tech materials on sale."

Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks all started looking over the list and divvying up what each would do.

"Hang on, why do you need lead?" Asked Sticks.

"Oh, I meant a lead blanket," said Tails, "It's a precaution against unnecessary radiation expo-"

Tails paused, his eyes widening and ears perking up. His mind rolled through various hypothesis and extrapolations while everyone else was left waiting.

"Hey, can one of you get me a full body radiation suit while your out?" Asked Tails, "It has to be lead based. The more layers, the better."

"Why…?" Asked Sonic.

"Because there's two notable possibilities left for how the moon triggers a morph," said Tails, "A biological clock in my brain, or something radiating from the moon itself."

"Hold on, you think hiding behind lead will keep you normal?" Asked Amy.

With a big smile, Tails said, "Maybe!"

Sonic, Amy, and Sticks went into town looking for the parts Tails was after, while Knuckles stayed with Tails. The two of them cleared out an area of the Workshop, removing the trash chemicals and pushing the Chemical Analysis Machine into a corner. With plenty of space to assemble a new machine, Tails retrieved what useful parts he had on hand. As Tails moved sheets of metal, Knuckles noticed he was still struggling with physical endurance.

With little left to do while waiting, Knuckles suggested Tails do some stretches. After deducing that his joints were quite messed up, Tails agreed. Over the course of a half hour, Knuckles coached Tails on multiple types of ergonomic stretching. This proved to help Tails learn more about how the transformations had affected his joints and muscles. Not to mention that he started to legitimately feel better and was able to move his limbs more freely. While he still had trouble with flying, Knuckles optimistically congratulated Tails' improvement since the morning.

Sonic and Amy returned, boxes of machine and electronic parts in tow. After Tails double checked they'd gotten everything, Sonic left him a bag of candy and took Knuckles into town. Seeing Tails start overextending himself as he planned out the construction, Amy stayed and took charge of organization. Over the course of a few hours Tails assembled the base of the body scanner while Amy fetched him tools and tracked his progress. She also managed to convince Tails to take necessary breaks to reduce his stress and eat some candy.

Later, Sticks walked in with Zooey. After a short explanation of needing Zooey's help with the logistics of finding the right kind of hazard suit, they presented Tails with a high end lead-lined radiation suit. Apparently someone ordered it to be an authentic Halloween costume, but refused to buy it due to how expensive it was. Before Zooey could pry too much about its purpose, Amy distracted her with the untranslated papers they'd retrieved from Ned's jacket. Sticks stayed as Zooey led Amy to the library to find more information about the strange language.

Having finished the X-ray attachment of the machine, Tails offered to scan Sticks' broken arm. Despite being extremely wary of letting X-rays beam through her body, Sticks decided to trust Tails. She grimaced fearfully as the machine loudly snapped images of her arm, but was relieved by the lack of side-effects. Tails worked with more confidence as Sticks let him test the scanner on her whole skeleton. This test produced detailed images of her wounds, which revealed that they weren't as serious as thought and were healing quickly.

The day passed further while Tails wired and calibrated the MRI function of the scanner. Sonic returned again, now wearing a somewhat convincing costume of his robot counterpart Metal Sonic. Apparently despite the rampant fear, everyone in the Village was vigorously prepared for the festivities at sunset. Sticks rushed out to set up some superstitious wards at her house, so Sonic stayed with Tails. While unable to help much with this phase of engineering, Sonic's company kept Tails confident.

Nearing the last few hours of daylight, Tails proclaimed the Multifunctional Full-Body Scanner completed. It was now a metal bed with a cylindrical end and multiple hydraulic attachments. Tails wasted no time in activating the machine and installing necessary software.

Sonic called everyone else and they expeditiously gathered at the Workshop. Sticks was now wearing a simple ghost costume, claiming that spirits don't bother you if they think you're one of them. Knuckles wasn't wearing anything but his usual attire, but he brought a tray of caramel apples he'd apparently been given. Then Amy entered wearing a more dress-like elf costume.

"Hey Ames, you're dressed for the wrong time of year." Said Sonic.

"Am I though?" Asked Amy with a cheeky smirk, "I'm just expressing the freedom to dress as whatever you want!"

"You forgot to get a costume, didn't you?" Said Sticks.

"I thought I could finish it by the end of the month!" Yelled Amy.

Everyone quieted down to let Tails focus on calibrating the scans of himself. The first and easiest ones were the X-rays, producing detailed images of his skeleton from multiple angles. Then he activated the MRI function and slide himself inside the cylindrical portion of the scanner. The loud banging that emanated from the machine startled everyone, but Tails assured them that was normal. After that, he switched the scanner to it's magnetic resonance spectroscopy mode. It took until the end of this scan for Tails to explain how it was reading his brain's active neurology, or brain waves for short.

Satisfied with the number of scans and feeling somewhat rushed for time, Tails went to his laptop and started investigating the images. He printed out most of the X ray and MRI images, while observing the results of the last scan on the laptop. I took a bit for anyone to notice Tails' gradual change of mood while analysing the images against normal anatomy. He started using highlighters to mark spots of his brain and body's MRI images, eventually covering them with illegible notes.

"What all have you found out?" Asked Sonic.

"Hold on." Said Tails.

Moving onto the X ray images of his skeleton, Tails marked multiple points around his hands and feet. He rubbed his muzzle nervously while staring at a close up of his jaw. Releasing a worried huff, Tails set the images of the MRI and X ray scans side by side, seeing some similar spots marked. He shook his head and started hastily reviewing the data on his computer, his hands trembling as he typed.

"Okay, what's wrong?" Asked Amy.

"This is… I shouldn't be surprised," said Tails, eyes locked on the screen, "There's a concerning amount of subtle lingering mutations in my body."

"You don't look different though." Said Sonic.

Tails pointed at his canines with a shaky finger and said, "This one's visible, as are my nails."

"Well, you're not ugly." Said Sonic.

"That's not to problem." Replied Tails, between heavy breathes, "This condition is stupid complicated."

"But you can fix it eventually, right" Said Amy.

"I-I can…" Tails grabbed his chest, "I just need to calm down…"

As Tails pulled over the heavily marked scanner images, he was noticeably overwhelmed by the amount of information. He rubbed his eyes for a second, and asked "W-what time is it?"

"We still have a few hours of daylight." Replied Amy.

"Okay, okay, okay!" Said Tails, "I'm fine then. I'm, fine!".

Seeing Tails attempt to write with his trembling hands, Sonic scooted over and took the pencil. Tails glared with shaky eyes, then allowed him and Amy to take the scanner images out of sight. Tails groaned frustratedly while pulling his legs up and crossing his arms. His rapid breathing fragmented his illegible mumbling.

"Tails, stop mumbling." Said Sonic, "Just breath, okay?"

"T-this is wasting my time…" Said Tails through his chattering teeth.

"You're dealing with a lot." Said Amy, "These panic attacks might hit pretty often."

"I-I'd be fine, if I, could just, focus!" Muttered Tails.

"Hey, don't put more pressure on yourself." Said Knuckles.

Tails held his tongue now, being less capable of processing the conversation through his panicking senses. He clasped his numb hands tightly to his chest and leaned forward, trying to mentally force himself to calm down. Then he looked up and saw everyone around him patiently waiting for him to recover.

"Your okay, be patient with yourself." Said Sonic, "Besides, your lead suit idea might work until we properly cure you. If it doesn't, we'll help you through this."

Tails worked up a small smile and nodded. Within a few minutes, his panic attack gradually subsided. When his mind reorganised all of his thoughts, Tails set his priorities straight. He wanted to keep himself from hurting anyone and he wanted to stop the other Werewolf from hurting anyone. Filling with confidence, Tails closed his laptop and slowly stood up. Conversing with the rest of the team, they came up with two plans for this Halloween night, each depending on what condition Tails was in at nightfall.

Meanwhile, Dr. Eggman was frantically working through his exhaustion. He'd be damned before letting all these werewolves, dead or alive, have their way. His best considerable chance now was extorting Tails into joining him. He chuckled confidently at this idea, still having the footage for blackmail. If he could just get Tails to come to his Lair for study overnight, Eggman would have a were-creature under his direct control! The he could take credit for all of the horrifying shenanigans and extort the Village in their moment of fear. All it'd take was some decent timing.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

Thank you for reading the story up to this point. If you've read the notes in my previous chapters, you may have noticed I had planned to finish this story by now.

I couldn't fit the climax into this and have it under ten-thousand words. As such, there will be a seventh chapter, of which will go directly into the climax and then falling action. Chapter seven will be the finale, and I am pretty sure it'll be around seven-thousand words. Unless I accidentally write in too many fluff scenes and don't cut enough of them.

As always, thanks so much for reading. Please leave a comment or review and tell me what I'm doing right and wrong. I already have a small list of criticisms that I will probably write into a critical analysis retrospective once the story is done. However, input from any readers would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time, and have a good day.  
-The Secret Person

PS: If you want to interact with me and ask me questions publicly or anonymously, visit my Tumblr!

onesecretperson. tumblr .com


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7, Finally Confronting the Present**

 **The Secret Person**

* * *

In Dr. Eggman's Lair, his unyielding work had almost completed his last resort invention, a rudimentary mind control helmet. All it needed was a proper mind alteration computer chip, of which Eggman hoped to salvage from Dreamcaster's decapitated metal skull. Sweat permeated Eggman's forehead as he started pulling small, broken computer components out of the skull. After a few tense moments, he plucked out a single intact computer chip and examined it closely.

"Hehehe…" Chuckled Eggman, "I have just enough scrap to complete my grand invention!"

"Uh, sir…" Said Orbot, "While it should be functional, this device is impractical."

Eggman slowly turned to Orbot with an exhausted scowl, then yelled, "Nothing about this is impractical! With Dreamcaster's mind-alteration components, I'll have either one of those mangy were-mutts under my control!"

"I apologize sir!" Replied Orbot, "I was just concerned about how your going to get this device on their heads."

"I've got a plan!" Said Eggman, facing the device and suppressing his self-doubt, "I always have a plan!"

"I still think we shoulda just built a lazer that controls the phase of the Moon." Said Cubot.

"I'd have done that If I had more time you numbskull!" Yelled Eggman.

With a little bit of soldering and screw tightening, Eggman installed the computer chip. Closing up all loose panels and tidying up the wires, he examined the completed mind control helmet. To be honest with himself, Eggman felt that it could've used some more creative flare as it looked more like an upside-down strainer than a high-tech invention.

"Alright, I'm heading out to Tails' place!" Announced Eggman as he picked up the helmet, "You two stay here and don't let anyone in!"

"What if trick or treaters show up?" Asked Cubot.

"Don't open the door for them either!" Said Eggman.

"But sir, won't that provoke possible retaliation from disgruntled children armed with bathroom supplies?" Asked Orbot.

"Then set up a bowl of candy outside!" Yelled Eggman, "But make sure they only take one!"

* * *

In his Workshop, Tails was trying on his new orange radiation hazmat suit. It came with a breathing apparatus and air tank, but Tails figured it'd be unnecessary for his purposes. As Amy helped him tighten straps on his arms and legs, the hindrance of its weight along with multiple layers of rubber and lead became apparent. After a little while of wiggling into the suit and fiddling with straps, Tails pulled the large headpiece and visor over his head.

"I'm gonna be honest," said Sticks, "You look ridiculous in that thing."

"I still have to get the back closed up," said Tails, "But yeah, this feels kinda awkward."

Tails took a moment to pace around, finding the suit manageable despite the weight and bulkiness. Although his Tails were uncomfortably crammed in the back of the suit, their tips poking up behind his head.

"I think I can handle this for a night." Said Tails.

"And if it doesn't work?" Asked Amy.

"Well…" Tails looked himself over, "I guess it wouldn't be the end of the world if this thing gets ruined. It's not like I need a radiation suit for anything else."

"Hey, at least you get to wear some sort've costume today!" Said Sonic.

Everyone jumped when a rapid knocking came to the door. As Tails backed away, Knuckles stepped over and opened it. Standing outside was Vector the crocodile and his camera crew who were all breathing heavily as they aligned their equipment. Before talking, Vector hesitated and gave a curious glance at the clutter of chemicals and Xray images inside.

"Hey, uh…" Vector coughed and continued, "Mayor F doesn't happen to be here, is he?"

"Uh, no." Replied Knuckles, "Why?"

"I've been looking for him everywhere!" Said Vector, "I figured since you lot were clearly colluding with him, I might find him here!"

"Ugh, look," started Sonic with a sigh, "We'd love to play along with your reality tv thing again, but you can't really help and we don't have the time-"

"Hey, I don't have time to waste either," said Vector, "If the mayor ain't here, he could be in deep trouble!"

"You'll be in deep trouble too if you don't get out of the way!" Yelled Eggman from the sky behind Vector.

"Eggman?!" Said Sonic.

Vector wasn't quite sure what to do as he gawked at Eggman, though his two person camera crew were already backing away. Sonic rushed outside while Amy and Knuckles hastily blocked the doorway. Eggman raised his eyebrow as he saw the costume of Metal Sonic that Sonic was wearing.

"Nice costume," said Eggman, "They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!"

"Why thank you Egghead!" Said Sonic, inciting a scowl from Eggman, "So what do you want?"

"To see Tails!" Replied Eggman, "I have a bargain to make."

"Well, technically Tails can't come out." Said Amy from the door, looking at the sunset nervously, "House arrest and all."

"I, He-, I don't care about that!" Yelled Eggman, "Look, I'll just admit that I'm in over my head and that insubordinate Werewolf is up to no good!"

"No good..." Said Vector quietly, "Uh oh…"

"If you want a truce, then just leave us alone!" Yelled Sonic.

"But I'm pretty sure Tails would be interested in my help." Said Eggman with a sly smirk as he help up his mind control helmet, "I have here a device that can pacify that Werewolf, keeping them in a harmless state overnight."

Tails gave a deadpan stare as he Looked out the Workshop window. He knew exactly what that device was, being he had saved it's schematics onto his computer. Glancing at Sticks beside him, they both silently confirmed that they knew it was a trap. Creaking the window open slightly, Tails decided to play along.

"Oh, I've been having trouble with that!" Said Tails, "Why don't you explain how it works?"

Sonic peered through the window at Tails, almost yelling at him to not trust Eggman. Receiving an obscured wink, he realized that Tails wasn't at all fooled. Eggman however began displaying very poor insight.

"It's simple!" Said Eggman, "Just put this on it's head, flip the switch on, and it'll use my most high-tech and top of the line components to stifle any form of transformation!"

"I dunno, maybe we'll be fine on our own!" Said Sonic.

"Well it's not like Tails has much time," said Eggman, gesturing at the sky, "I mean, it'd take hours to put something like this together."

"...Okay, I'll trust you on this." Said Tails, voice barely maintaining a tone of seriousness.

Tails stepped out the door in his orange radiation suit and gave Amy and Knuckles a thumbs up behind his back as he walked past. Nearby, Vector raised a hand to his chin as his cameraman filmed the scene. Once Tails was next to Sonic, Eggman lowered the eggmobile to the ground. He handed Tails the helmet, unsubtly stifling a menacing chuckle.

"I presume this uses subtle electromagnetic pulses to affect the mutated glands in their brain, right?" Said Tails.

"Uh, yeah, but it's not that simple!" Said Eggman, "Afterall, a creature with such mutagenic properties has all sorts of chemical reactions to consider."

"I'm well aware," said Tails with a smirk, "Though I figured it'd be easier to isolate them from the environmental factor that induces the whole process. But I'm sure you somehow unravelled all of the complex biochemistry involved and invented this cure-all helmet in the span of a single day."

Eggman's expression shifted to sudden realization as he gawked at the radiation suit Tails was wearing. He looked up at the others, seeing a confident smirk from Sonic and a curious stare from Vector. Sighing deeply as a wave of exhaustion hit him, Eggman prepared to leave.

"Well played, but incase your plan fails, you can keep my device for backup." Said Eggman.

"Sure!" Said Tails, "Just as soon as I remove your decapitated robot's mind control components."

"You little-!" Eggman stopped himself, "I don't have time for this! I hope you all have a horrible night!"

As Eggman grumbled and piloted the eggmobile away, Sonic and Tails noticed movement near his house. A moment later, Zooey jumped out of cover and double checked Eggman was gone. Sonic and Tails exchanged a confused glance as she cautiously walked over with a rolled up paper in her hands.

"Hi Zooey!" Said Tails, "Everything alright?"

"Sorry, I didn't want to get caught in the crossfire if you guys started fighting," said Zooey, "But I've got some bad news."

"That can wait!" Said Vector, "The Mayor is still missing, and I'm beginning to suspect Eggman's former cohort is behind it!"

"Actually, this is about the Mayor!" Said Zooey, waving her hand at Vector, "I'm Zooey by the way."

Vector raised his eyebrow and said, "What do you mean?"

Holding out the roll of paper in her hands, Zooey said, "While the book club and I were translating the text Amy gave us, someone slipped us this note in the same language, which we translated."

Taking the note, Tails read it over and gasped. As Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks ran over, Sonic and Vector leaned over Tails' shoulders and read along.

"He kidnapped the mayor?!" Said Sonic, "Why does he just want you and me?"

"Probably to coerce us…" said Tails, glancing at the sunset, "We don't have much time."

"Much time till what?" Asked Zooey.

"This guy's a Werewolf," said Amy quickly, "He'll be tough to apprehend at nightfall."

Zooey's eyes widened and her ear twitched, "That was a legitimate Werewolf… it looked kinda different on tv… but..."

His ears lowering in guilt as Zooey started rambling in concern, Tails said, "It won't come near crowds, so everyone should be safe."

"So you and Vector should wait in town while we handle this." Said Sonic.

"Hmpf, sure, you guys go on ahead." Said Vector, "I've got some thinking to do."

Giving a nervous smile, Zooey said, "Okay, stay safe."

* * *

After removing their costumes in preparation for a fight, Team Sonic decided to split up. Sticks stayed at the Workshop with Tails, prepared to keep him locked up if his radiation suit didn't work. The others donned their usual battle apparel and headed out to where Ned's ransom note had demanded they appear.

Deep in the Island's woods, Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles trudged along toward the ransom location. The sky was rapidly dimming as the sunset began to fade over the horizon. Glancing up, Sonic observed the now waning Moon being unveiled behind light cloud cover. They hustled their pace until coming upon a wide clearing. At the other side of the clearing was Ned the Wolf, leaning against a tree and inspecting them with his brown eyes. Seeing no sign of Mayor Fink, they kept their guard up.

"It appears you've ignored my request and brought your companions," said Ned's scraggy voice, "But this'll do."

"What do you want?" Asked Amy, holding her hammer readily.

"If you could not hit me in the jaw again, that'd be great!" Said Ned with a twinge of anger in his eyes, "I want you all to finally listen, and perhaps join your friend and I."

"You mean become Werewolves?" Asked Sonic.

"Yes," said Ned, "Though I realize we've gotten off on the wrong foot, I have reason to believe I can sway you."

"I doubt that." Replied Sonic, contempt filling his expression.

"Were only here for the Mayor," said Knuckles, "So if you'd kindly point us in his direction, that'd be great."

Ned smiled sinisterly and pointed up. Looking at the top of the tree beside him, everyone saw Mayor Fink tied to the tip by leftover rope. He appeared to be unconscious, his head leaning forward limply.

"What did you do to him?!" Yelled Sonic.

"Nothing! He just passed out." Replied Ned, "Though I'm shocked at your concern. I'm sure you lot would appreciate freedom from people like him."

"If we wanted to be anarchists, we'd be anarchists!" Said Amy, "You don't have to be an insane Werewolf for that, just ask Sticks."

"Insane?" Said Ned, squinting at Amy, "It may appear and feel that way, but I've found there's purpose behind this!"

"I don't care what kind of 'purpose' you've made up!" Yelled Sonic, "Just because you're like this gives you no right to do this too Tails!"

"The Fox chose it!" Yelled Ned, stepping forward slowly, "He may not understand, he may be overthinking it, but this isn't insanity! You have to look beyond your petty life and your petty friends and your petty career to see that it was claimed for a purpose!"

As Ned yelled and stepped forward, his arms began visibly trembling. Sonic glanced up to see the Moon completely unveiled overhead. Pressing a paging key on his wrist communicator, Sonic prepared for a fight.

"Should we knock him out before he turns into a Werewolf?" Asked Knuckles.

"NO! NEED!" Yelled Ned, stumbling into the moonlight, "I w-won't harm you! So long you listen to the old one!"

As Ned stopped and held his arms out expectantly, Sonic, Amy, and Knuckles exchanged confirming glances and prepared to attack. They all froze in place when looking back at Ned, seeing a figure behind him. Standing tall and still was a large wolf-like Skeleton, its body shrouded by a ragged cloak. As it hesitated motionlessly under the canopy of trees, its empty eye sockets scrutinized the group.

"T-that can't be!" Muttered Amy.

"That's-, that's the skull from the ruin!" Said Knuckles.

"THIS!" Yelled Ned, dark purple eyes narrowing on Sonic, "This one is proof of our purpose! Proof of my potential value! PROOF I DIDN'T GO INSANE FOR NO REASON!"

"We should run…" Muttered Amy.

"But the Mayor-!" Said Sonic, pausing as his wrist communicator quietly paged him back, "...He's fine."

Nodding confidently at Amy, Sonic faced Ned again. Seeing his expression contort into rage as his fangs became more prominent, Amy raised her hammer and Knuckles raised his fists. The Skeletal figure behind him didn't show any reaction to their provocation.

"We don't want your Lycanthropy!" Yelled Sonic, "Just leave Tails alone!"

"I-I, Can't!" Replied Ned, "If you won't, I-I'll find you friend and-!"

Ned was interrupted as Sonic charged into him, sending him flying backwards. As Sonic landed on his feet, he saw Ned's body slam into the Skeleton, not budging it at all. Under the slight obscurity of the forest canopy, Ned began growling furiously as he writhed on the ground.

"Knuckles, with me! Amy, get Fink!" Yelled Sonic.

"Right!" Confirmed Knuckles and Amy simultaneously.

A few moments passed as Ned rose from the dirt, his figure obscurely growing back to that familiar dreaded form. Sonic hesitated readily and concentrated on the Skeletal figure, surprised at its lack of retaliation. While Knuckles opted to dig himself into a tunnel behind Sonic, Amy had already begun leaping her way up the large tree to Mayor Fink. A moment later, Ned shot up on all fours and faced Sonic, releasing a furious, ear-piercing howl.

"Why're you so whiny?!" Said Sonic, rubbing his ear in pain.

The Werewolf responded by pouncing at Sonic, revealing itself in the moonlight. As Sonic narrowly evaded its swipes and bites, he began running circles around it. This failed to daze the Werewolf as it managed to graze him with a claw. Skidding to a stop and assessing his minor wound, Sonic suddenly noticed that the Skeletal figure was gone.

"Hey, where'd that undead fella go?!" Yelled Sonic.

"I don't know!" Replied Amy as she scanned the area from halfway up the tree.

The Werewolf attempted to strike Sonic in his moment of distraction, but was grabbed by its ankle as Knuckles emerged from the dirt. The towering Werewolf fell to the dirt with a thud. Focusing back on the fight, Sonic tried to take advantage of the opening with a spindash. This resulted in him being whacked across the dirt and into a tree.

While Sonic reoriented himself, Knuckles was plucked from his hole and held aloft by the Werewolf. As it shook him around, He began throwing desperate punches with his free arm. While struggling with Knuckles, the Werewolf looked up at Amy and saw she had almost reached Mayor Fink. In a moment of brilliant calculation and strategy, it heaved and threw Knuckles at the tree.

"AAAAH-OOF!" Yelled Knuckles as he impacted the middle of the tree.

The large tree shook slightly, but Amy managed to hang on. With a quick glance below, she saw Sonic hitting the Werewolf in the back as Knuckles landed on his feet. Seeing both of them display continuous resilience, Amy focused on the Mayor. With just one more leap, she steadied herself on a branch next to him. After pulling the blindfold off his eyes, Mayor Fink jolted awake with a yell.

"Are you okay?!" Asked Amy.

"Wha-... I think so…" Replied Mayor Fink, "What time is it?"

"Time for us to get out of here!" Yelled Amy, punctuated by a yell from Sonic as he was hurled across the clearing again.

"Oh dear!" Said Mayor Fink as he took in the situation, "I'm never following an unfamiliar and unkempt stranger into the woods again!"

"Uh Huh…" Mutter Amy as she started untangling the ropes.

Back on the ground, Sonic and Knuckles were fighting the Werewolf from opposite sides. One of Knuckles' punches was suddenly caught in its sharp jaws, his fist being crushed between its teeth. In quick retaliation, Sonic jumped onto the Werewolf's head, making it release Knuckles' fist. Sonic landed beside Knuckles as he retrieved his hand and backed up in pain.

"Amy, you got him yet?!" Asked Knuckles while cradling his hand.

"Almost!" Replied Amy.

Towering over Sonic and Knuckles, the Werewolf's purple eyes flicked between them as its tail swayed aggressively. Sonic hummed nervously as Knuckles tried to clench his wounded fist. The fact that the Skeletal Figure had disappeared kept nagging at Sonic's mind, impairing his focus. He almost didn't notice when the Werewolf became distracted by the sound of a propeller engine.

* * *

Flying through the evening sky in Tails' yellow Biplane, Sticks leaned over her seat and watched the skyline. With his vision and movements obscured by the bulky orange radiation suit, Tails was relying on her for clear guidance. He piloted the Plane at an angle and kept his eyes low to avoid direct line of sight with the Moon. As Sticks caught sight of Amy standing on a large tree, she picked up the bulky Shield Trap from her seat.

"I think that's Amy in the tree over there!" Yelled Sticks.

"I see her," said Tails, taking a heavy breath, "Is that the Mayor?"

"I think so!" Said Sticks, "How do ya feel?"

"I'm overheating, weighed down, and incredibly nervous!" Yelled Tails, "But I've got this!"

"Alright Tails, you can do this!" Said Sticks.

On the ground, The Werewolf was blinded by the Plane's bright spotlights. Smiling slightly, Sonic grabbed Knuckles' arm and dashed away. The Werewolf however knelt down on all fours and snarled savagely at this surprising sight.

"Sticks, now!" Yelled Tails as the Plane nosedived at the clearing.

On cue, Sticks lifted the Shield Trap with one arm and chucked at the large Werewolf. At the moment she released it, Tails pulled up sharply. The Plane banked just left of Amy and Mayor Fink, resulting in two startled screams as they were almost knocked off the tree. The Shield Trap impacted the ground intact, sliding right up to the Werewolf's feet.

"That was too close!" Yelled Amy, holding onto a tree branch with one arm.

"Tails, activate it!" Yelled Sonic into his communicator.

As Sonic yelled, the Werewolf abruptly charged at him and Knuckles. With no time to think, Sonic counterchanged. He managed to slam himself into its chest, throwing them both into the Shield Trap's radius. Sonic watched as the dome like energy shield shot into the air and encaged them. He stopped gawking at the energy shield long enough to notice he was still on top of a very disgruntled Werewolf.

"Uh oh." Mumbled Sonic right before being slammed into the shield dome.

As Tails sharply circled the Plane back toward the clearing, he heard Sticks gasp. Turning his head slightly, he caught an obscured glimpse of Sonic's signature blue inside the shield dome with the Werewolf. His heart skipped a beat.

"Sonic!" Yelled Tails as he fumbled to deactivate the trap.

"Tails, turn on the electricity!" Yelled Sonic into his communicator as he curled up.

"But, It'll be too much!" Replied Tails.

Sonic couldn't respond this time as the Werewolf picked him up and started thrashing him. He put an effort into kicking and struggling, but was completely overpowered. Knuckles ran at the shield dome and punched at it, trying desperately to draw the Werewolf's attention.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Yelled Knuckles.

"Tails, Sonic can't take that kind of beating!" Yelled Sticks.

Tails' hand was trembling as it hovered over his wrist, it was hard for him to know why at this point. Hearing a pained yell from Sonic, Tails considered turning off the shield. But as the Plane glided directly over the clearing, he glanced over the side and considered Sonic's judgement. With no more time to contemplate, Tails lowered the charge and activated the electricity.

While staring at the crazed Werewolf over him, Sonic worried Ned had gone homicidally mad. His mind barely processed that he was being electrocuted, small arcs of electricity shocking him and the Werewolf. His vision blurred as a unknown amount of time passed. Barely conscious, Sonic noticed that the electricity had stopped when his eyes made out the Werewolf lying on the ground beside him.

"Is he down?!" Asked Tails, focusing on slowing the Plane and circling the clearing.

"I think..." Replied Sticks, "Wait, no!"

Inside the shield dome, Sonic was losing consciousness while the Werewolf was already picking itself back up. It uttered a shaky growl and glared at the yellow box that had electrocuted it. Knuckles grumbled in frustration and wound up further wounding his fist with an ineffective punch. Behind him, Amy was carrying Mayor Fink to the ground, taking well placed drops as both arms held the Mayor's rotund body.

"It's no good Tails!" Yelled Sticks, "Hit it again!"

Whining quietly, Tails held the button on his wrist again, activating the electricity. This time he watched as the Werewolf's figure stumbled and fell to the ground. He could barely make out Sonic, who appeared to be lying motionlessly near the edge. Unwilling to continue, Tails immediately released the button. It took him a moment to catch enough breath to talk.

"Is it…" Tails huffed aloud, "Is it down now?"

Amy released Mayor Fink and ran up beside Knuckles, staring at Sonic through the shield. The Werewolf was struggling to stand, but unable to lift itself yet. Knowing Sonic couldn't take much more, she activated her communicator.

"Tails, turn off the shield! We'll get Sonic!" Said Amy, receiving a confirmative nod from Knuckles.

Tails promptly deactivated the Shield and focused as best he could on the scene below. As Amy and Knuckles took Sonic by his arms and dragged him away, Tails mentally calculated their distance from the Shield Trap. Suddenly, the Werewolf clumsily pounced at Sonic, managing to grip his leg. Yelping aloud and waiting for no instruction, Tails turned the Shield Trap back on.

"AHH!" Yelled Amy whilst kicking the snarling Werewolf in the face, "Let him go!"

As Amy and Knuckles held Sonic, they watched the shield dome reactivate. The solid energy fell onto the Werewolf's body just behind its neck, pressing it to the ground. Still, it stubbornly refused to release its hold on Sonic.

"She said let him go!" Yelled Knuckles.

With one hard punch to the Werewolf's arm, it let go of Sonic's leg and yelped, allowing Knuckles and Amy to pull him away.

"It's still trying to kill us!" Yelled Amy.

"That thing is persistent!" Said Mayor Fink as he stayed back, "Tails is like this too?"

"Who do you think's piloting that Plane?!" Replied Amy.

Seeing Sonic free, Tails reactivated the electricity. The Werewolf gnarled and clawed at the dirt as the voltage shot through its body. Now that Sonic was in the clear, not only did Tails keep holding the electricity on, he began turning up the power. The energy shield began to falter and fade slightly as the trap rapidly depleted its power supply.

Amy and Knuckles gawked as the Werewolf before them stubbornly refused to stay down. Uttering a worried groan, Amy gestured at Knuckles to hold Sonic. Retrieving her hammer, Amy ran at the Werewolf and hit it on the head. Too her surprise, it meekly swiped back at her in retaliation. Raising her hammer higher, Amy closed her eyes as she smacked it squarely on the head. Peeking down, it now appeared to be unconscious.

"Tails, that's enough!" Said Amy through her communicator with a sigh, "He's knocked out!"

His mind blanking for a moment, Tails took a bit to respond and turn off the shield. As he refocused on piloting the Plane, he noticed the trembling in his hands hadn't lightened up.

"Tails, how're you feeling?" Asked Sticks, having noticed his delayed response.

"I think I'm still fine," replied Tails, "But we should definitely land."

"Okay, just keep it together pal." Said Sticks.

Tails gave her a thumbs up with his lead-lined rubber glove while staring at his flight controls. Pacing his breathing, he evened out their altitude and prepared to fly back to the Workshop.

"Hold on," said Mayor Fink as he watched the sky, "What's that?"

As Tails began turning the Plane, its left wing was hit by a lazer blast. The resulting turbulence nearly shook Sticks overboard while Tails struggled with the controls. Once Sticks had pulled herself back into the seat, she turned around to see their assailant.

Chasing right behind their yellow Biplane was none other than that dang ole' Dr. Eggman and his eggmobile. Hooked haphazardly on both sides of the eggmobile where two four-legged Mantisbots, of which looked like red metal praying mantises armed with sharp boomerang-like blades. As Sticks assessed the situation, Tails turned around to see this. He then realized what the glowing orb in the sky behind Eggman was and promptly faced forward again.

"Are you freaking serious!" Yelled Amy as she watched from the ground, "Why couldn't he just stay home?!"

While trying to blindly evade Eggman, Tails groaned and said, "I don't have time for this!"

"GO AWAY!" Yelled Sticks.

"Why would I?" Replied Eggman, closing in on them, "I'm going to take at least some of the credit for all the shenanigans tonight! Even if it means outsourcing the destruction of Team Sonic to you, Tails!"

Tails released a loud, frustrated growl as he locked his eyes on the sky ahead of him. The Plane began to accelerate and sway evasively, all the while Tails considered his options. His thought process was interrupted by an alarm on his dash alerting him to incoming missiles. Sweat beginning to permeate his forehead, Tails whined nervously and focused on steering.

"Hang on Sticks!" Yelled Tails as the Plane narrowly evaded the missiles.

Amy and Knuckles watched helplessly from the ground as Eggman chased Tails further away. Glancing at Sonic, she knew he wasn't in any condition to help.

"I thought I told Eggman he was under house arrest." Said Mayor Fink.

Amy gave the Mayor a deadpan stare, and he decided to shut his mouth. With few ideas, Amy raised her wrist communicator.

"Tails, can you lead him back here?" Asked Amy.

A few moments passed, and Tails replied, "Yeah, Gimme a second-Woah!"

"What's going on?!" Asked Amy.

In the air, Eggman had managed to fly the eggmobile directly above Tails's Plane.

"Eggman's being stubborn pain!" Replied Tails.

"Tear his suit to pieces!" Commanded Eggman.

Replying with robotic chirps, the Mantisbots flung their blades at Tails. Seeing this, Sticks pushed Tails' head down without warning. While this prevented him from being sliced by a flurry of spinning blades, the Plane suddenly dropped into a nosedive. Tails yelled and pulled up as the Plane skimmed the top of a tree.

"Sorry!" Yelled Sticks.

In their moment of distraction, one of Eggman's Mantisbots leapt from the eggmobile and onto the rear end of Tails' Plane. Hearing a loud metal thud, Sticks turned around and saw the Mantisbot already crawling forward, two blades boomeranging back into its arms. Taking advantage of the turbulence, Sticks lunged at it and attempted to kick it overboard. She managed to make it stumble, but it held its focus on Tails, opting to throw one of its blades at him.

"Aah!" Yelled Tails as the blade skimmed his suit and impaled the Plane's dashboard.

"There's nowhere to run!" Yelled Eggman from above, "Why don't you just face your problems?!"

"Because that's what I'm here for!" Replied Sticks.

Displaying deft dexterity, Sticks leaned over Tails and yanked the blade from the dashboard. She swung around just in time to block the Mantisbot's remaining blade. As they struggled behind Tails, Sticks chopped it's armed arm clean off with a powerful swing. Releasing a metallic screech, the Mantisbot attacked her with a frenzied headbutt. Yelling a war cry, Sticks cleaved the Mantisbot's head, leaving its own blade lodged in its sparking face.

"Woah…" Muttered Eggman, then glancing at his remaining robot, "Do something about her please!"

From the ground, Amy and Knuckles could see Tails' Plane and the eggmobile circling back. Checking that the Werewolf was still unconscious, Amy and Knuckles leaned Sonic next to Mayor Fink who kept tepid watch over him. They then ran out into the clearing, looking for a way to intervene.

Pushing the limb robot off the Plane, Sticks braced herself as Eggman closed in again. Tails caught a peek of Eggman's position and decided to assert some air superiority.

"Sticks," said Tails, "Hang on tight!"

"Alright!" Replied Sticks, sliding back into her seat.

As Eggman was about to order the Mantisbot to jump, Tails banked sharply and rammed into the side of the eggmobile. The Mantisbot was nearly pushed off its perch as the two vehicles scrapped into each other. Fighting to stay in the air, Eggman glared at Tails, who turned just enough for Eggman to catch a glimpse of his viscous scowl through the visor.

"Agh! Do something you hunk of junk!" Yelled Eggman.

The Mantisbot chirped and raised it blades readily, but was caught off guard as Sticks lunged at it with a wild yell. Unprepared for her tackle, the Mantisbot threw its blades aimlessly and completely missed Sticks. With all the turbulence between the two straining aircraft, Sticks managed to pry the Mantisbot from its perch and shove it overboard. As it fell backward, the Mantisbot managed to throw Sticks off balance with a kick and she tumbled over with it.

"Sticks!" Yelled Tails, his heart racing.

Seeing his robot fall, Eggman huffed and forced the eggmobile away from Tails' Plane. As they were losing altitude, both he and Tails frantically worked to avoid crashing violently.

On the ground, Amy and Knuckles ran to catch Sticks. With two figures falling from the sky, they split and bounded under both. Hopping into the air, Amy almost toppled over as Sticks landed squarely in her arms. Beside her, Knuckles had caught the Mantisbot between his arms, cradling it confusedly.

"That was close…" Said Sticks.

"You could've died!" Chastised Amy.

"But I didn't," replied Sticks with a smirk, "You can put me down now."

"What should I do with this?" Asked Knuckles, leaning his head away from the sprawled out Mantisbot in his arms.

"You could keep it as a pet." Suggested Amy.

With a bewildered metallic chirp, the Mantisbot jumped out of Knuckles' arms and onto its legs. As it prepared to charge at them with its head, Knuckles, Amy and Sticks sighed in unison and prepared to violently deactivate it.

Flying just close enough to yell at Tails, Eggman said, "You almost killed us both!"

"You shouldn't be messing with me right now!" Replied Tails.

"And miss out on potential vengeance? Never!" Said Eggman, "I have half a mind to leap over there myself at pull you out of that suit! Then what would your brains do to help?!"

"You'd have me turn into a monster, right here, right now, while I'm filled with immense and immeasurable contempt directed solely at you?!" Yelled Tails, making eye contact through his visor.

Eggman stared blankly for a moment, considering his chances. Based on the way Tails was aligning his flight path to potentially ram him again, Eggman knew they'd both go down if he kept fighting. His contemplation came to a halt at the sound of a frightened scream.

Everyone turned to see Ned the Werewolf standing over Sonic's unconscious body. Looking the desperate Werewolf in its purple eyes, Mayor Fink decided to jump out of its way. Without a moment for anyone to react, the Werewolf picked up Sonic in its jaws and fled into the woods.

"STOP!" Yelled Amy.

As Amy began to give chase, she was hit in the back by the Mantisbot. Knuckles promptly punched its head off while Sticks pulled Amy to her feet. As the three of them recollected and gave chase into the woods, Amy raised her wrist communicator.

"Tails! He has Sonic!"

"I saw!" Replied Tails, before he faced Eggman again, "I'm going after Sonic! You can get in my way if you want to deal with both furious lycanthropes!"

Thinking on it for a mere moment, Eggman said, "Fine, get out of here! But I'm considering this a stalemate!"

"I couldn't care less!" Replied Tails as he banked his Plane away.

Sighing slightly, Eggman glanced down at the clearing and saw Mayor Fink standing alone with a dumbfounded look on his face. After a moment of staring at each other awkwardly, Mayor Fink spoke up.

"So, uh, could you point me back to the Village?" Said Mayor Fink, "I'll officially consider this whole ordeal a stalemate if you want."

Silently pointing with his hand, Eggman chuckled to himself. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of Sonic's face when the news of him sort of but not really losing aired on TV.

* * *

The nearly full Moon brightly illuminated the Island, worrying Tails to no end as he searched for Sonic. With the Plane's spotlights aimed at the forest below, he started leaning up in order to get better view of the ground. It took Tails a moment to notice that the Plane was starting to nosedive again.

"Ah!" Yelled Tails as he pulled up, "Gotta focus, I'm fine, just focus!"

His mind continued to race as he piloted the Plane further inland. The thick canopy of trees blocked any clear view of the ground, frustrating him to no end. Growling at this nuisance, Tails rubbed his head. He examined his trembling hand, realizing that he may not be able to pilot the Plane too much longer.

"Keep it together, Keep it together!" Muttered Tails.

Amy's voice suddenly emanated from his communicator, saying, "Tails, do you see him yet?"

Taking a moment to pace his breathing, Tails replied, "No, there are too many trees! How far are you?"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" Replied Amy, "But their moving too fast, I don't we'll can catch up until they stop!"

Audibly whining, Tails started mulling over his options. Even if he saw Sonic and the Werewolf, what could he do from the air now? Perhaps he could confirm their locations for the others then try to get back to his Workshop before more symptoms set in.

"How're you holding up?" Asked Knuckles from the communicator.

"Could be better." Replied Tails, "But I'll hold myself together long enough to find Sonic!"

"If you can get them to stop," said Amy, "We can probably catch up!"

"I'll do what I can," said Tails, "I'll find them!"

* * *

Feeling movement through his numb nerves, Sonic started to wake. Part of him wanted to stay asleep, but for some reason he felt a sense of urgency. It became clear he should check his surroundings when he felt a bush slap across his face. Weakly opening his eyes, Sonic tried to figure out what was going on.

All of his muscles started to ache as the numbness subsided, the pain only getting worse the more he was jostled. Vision clearing, Sonic glanced up to see a large grey figure carrying him by his quills. Realizing who this was, Sonic instinctively panicked and started to meekly struggle. The fact that the Werewolf wasn't noticing his protests only further irked him.

"H-hey!" Mumbled Sonic, followed by a cough.

It stopped moving for a second, giving Sonic some time to reorient himself. While trying to think of an escape, he noticed the Werewolf was shivering. He then became distracted by how uncomfortable the biting on his quills was becoming, more so when the Werewolf started to run again.

"Stop…" Muttered Sonic, "Let me go… or else!"

The only response Sonic heard was a snort. Then he heard something else, the wir of a familiar engine.

"Tails…?" Asked Sonic, moving his head to look up.

Seeing some dim light appear through the forest canopy, Sonic fully recalled the previous encounter. Determined to not allow himself made a hostage, Sonic aimed a kick directly at one of the Werewolf's legs. With a yelp and stumble, Sonic was dropped to the ground. As he tried to will his body to stand up, he saw the desperate glare in the Werewolf's eyes.

"Is that…" Mumbled Tails, narrowing his vision.

Glancing up, Tails saw that he was approaching a wide river that split the forest. Looking back down, Tails watched as a shaded movement started sprinting through the trees again. He gasped when he saw peek of blue.

"I found him!" Yelled Tails, only remembering to activate his communicator after saying that, "Knuckles, Amy, I found him!"

"Where?!" Replied Amy.

"We're coming up on a river," replied Tails, "They'll have to stop!"

"That's great!" Replied Knuckles.

"Is Sonic okay?!" Asked Amy.

"I can't tell," replied Tails, "Just hurry!"

"Okay!"

Being dragged by his leg was definitely more uncomfortable for Sonic than being held by his quills. Though he could see that the Werewolf was having trouble keeping this pace. It only dragged him a little further before stopping for an unknown reason. Upon hearing rushing water, Sonic realized they were blocked off by a river.

"You can't keep running…" Mumbled Sonic, "Unless you let me go…"

Overhead, Tails' Plane closed in, spotlights illuminating the area. With a startled growl, the Werewolf backed up toward the rushing river. Sonic was greatly alarmed by this, so he opted to start kicking and punching. He had enough energy to be more than a nuisance now, eventually landing a light punch on its eye. This only provoked the Werewolf to act even more desperately.

Tails felt cold chills as he watched the Werewolf lift Sonic with its jaws and dive toward the river. In a lapse of judgement, it immediately slammed its head into an exposed rock, dropping itself and Sonic into the rushing current. Tails stared in shock whilst the Plane started to tip, before he hastily corrected his trajectory. He eventually spotted a glimpse of Sonic pulling himself up a rock, only to be dragged back under the running water.

"A-amy! They're in the river!" Yelled Tails, "Sonic's in the river! Hurry!"

"We're running as fast as we can!" Replied Amy, "I don't know if we'll get there in time!"

"Can you get him Tails?!" Asked Knuckles, "You can swim!"

"I'm covered in lead!" Said Tails, "I'll sink like a rock!"

Looking from his flight controls back to the river, Tails caught another glimpse of Sonic being pulled toward the center of the river. His heart pounding and hands trembling, Tails realized the others couldn't give him any better ideas.

"I'm gonna get him!" Yelled Tails, "Please hurry! Keep me from hurting him, okay?!"

"What?!" Yelled Amy.

"Hurry!" Yelled Tails, pulling the communicator off his wrist.

Working as fast as possible, Tails activated an autopilot designed to get the Plane back home. Then he unsealed the back of the radiation suit, managing to slip his upper body out within seconds. By the time he pulled his legs out, he felt a sudden increase in lightheadedness. As the Plane passed over the river again, Tails began climbing over the side. He almost slipped and fell, feeling increasingly disoriented as the moonlight scenery started blending together.

Vision narrowing on Sonic's shape under the water below, Tails took a determined breath and jumped. As he fell into the water, Tails focused solely on Sonic. Despite the rushing current, he dived to Sonic and grabbed his arms. Using just his legs and tails, he lifted Sonic to the surface. Breaking through the top of the river, Tails caught a full view of the Moon. He ignored this as he lifted Sonic over his head, knowing he'd gone too long without air already.

As the environment around him seemed to blur, Tails closed his eyes and continued paddling with Sonic on his back. It felt like an eternity as all he could focus on was swimming. When Tails suddenly hit the riverbank, he took a heavy breath in relief. Rising to his feet, Tails carried Sonic away from the river. After a few wobbly steps, his legs seized up and the two fell to the dirt. This was when Tails recalled why he was in a rush.

Hearing Sonic coughing, Tails said, "S-sonic?!"

Sonic took another moment to cough up water, managing to weekly pull a hand to his face. Opening his eyes, Sonic's vision cleared to see Tails leaning over him. He quickly figured out what had happened, and gave a meek smile.

"Sonic, c-can you get up?" Asked Tails.

"I-" Sonic coughed again, "Gimme a minute."

"I-I'm sorry," said Tails, "You have to-"

Hearing Tails abruptly grunt, Sonic squinted. Seeing the Moon above them, his mouth hung agape in realization. He looked at the distressed expression in Tails' violet eyes, then began trying his best to stand.

"You did great," said Sonic between breathes, "Thank you!"

"Y-you have to go now." Said Tails quietly, holding a hand to his head, "A-Amy, the others, they're on their way."

"Hang on bud!" Said Sonic, "We can get you back to-"

"I'll be okay." Said Tails, "J-just don't let me hurt you."

"Okay, okay..." Said Sonic, "Try to stay safe, okay?"

Tails nodded slightly, prompting Sonic stand to his feet. Once he was balanced, Sonic looked toward the forest and immediately screamed in surprise. Standing inanimately still a few yards away was the towering Skeletal figure he saw earlier. Its familiar skull expressionlessly scrutinized Tails, seemingly ignoring Sonic. Stumbling backward, Sonic grabbed Tails' arm and prepared to run.

"I'm not leaving you with that-!" Sonic stopped as he saw Tails frozen in place, eyes locked on the Skeletal figure, "Tails?! Snap out of it!"

Tails didn't respond. Then Sonic heard a series of wet footsteps and turned to see Ned the Werewolf hobbling toward them. As its gaze fell upon the Skeletal figure, the Werewolf froze in place, unwilling or unable to move.

"Tails, we gotta go!" Yelled Sonic, tightening his grip on Tails' arm.

The air seemed to get chillier as Sonic looked between the Werewolves, living and dead. Completely unnerved, Sonic slowly stepped in front of Tails and raised his shivering fists.

"L-leave, him, alone!" Yelled Sonic through his chattering teeth, "He doesn't want this!"

The Skeletal figure's skull turned robotically, facing Sonic directly. Its whole body started approaching, taking slow, methodical steps in a stiff, robotic manner. Sonic verbally stuttered in fear, glancing back at Tails to see him still frozen in place.

"I'm warning you!" Yelled Sonic, pushing his lungs to their current limits.

The Skeletal figure ignored him and continued its slow walk. With no options, Sonic yelled and ran at it with what was left of his strength. Without facing him directly, the Skeletal figure reached out and grabbed Sonic's entire head in its bony claw. Sonic felt himself lifted from his feet, so he began throwing frantic but ineffective punches. He was raised up to its eye level, staring helplessly as it raised a finger to its teeth. Though there was no sound, Sonic somehow felt the it shushing him.

The Skeletal figure released its grip of Sonic's head and he fell limply to the dirt, left staring as it approached Tails and Ned. The Skeletal figure seemed to stare Tails in his dark purple eyes, before turning its head up to the Moon. It reached into its ragged cloak, pulling out some sort of silver needle. Sonic gasped as it poked Tails on the forehead with the object, followed shortly by doing the same to Ned. In a few seconds, Tails collapsed to ground, as did Ned shortly thereafter.

"Huuuuuuh….." Sighed the ancient Werewolf, a last breath leaving the cavity of its chest.

With nothing supporting its weight, the lifeless corpse collapsed to the ground. Sonic took a deep breath and found he could move his limbs again. Scrambling to his knees, he crawled over to Tails.

"SONIC!" Yelled Amy, running out of the woods, "Oh my gosh, you're okay!"

Knuckles and Sticks emerged shortly thereafter, both shocked by the scene before them. It didn't take long for them to notice that Sonic was focused on Tails, so they ran over to help. Checking Tails' pulse, Amy was relieved to find he was alive. Though none of them knew why he still appeared mostly normal.

When Knuckles checked Ned's unconscious body, he noticed his form had shrunk back to normal. As everyone wrapped their minds around the realization Ned had converted back to a normal wolf person, Tails coughed and startled awake.

"Tails! Can you hear me?" Asked Sonic.

"Ugh, yeah…" Mumbled Tails, blinking to reveal his blue eyes, "What's the problem…?"

"Bud, We're out in the Full Moon." Replied Sonic.

"Technically it's waning now." Said Amy.

"Well it clearly to works for Werewolves, so I'm calling it full!" Said Sonic.

Recalling what was going on, Tails leaned up and looked around in a panic. His rapid breathing started to slow as he realized he didn't feel any symptoms, aside from the discomfort derived of his chilly and soaked hide. Glancing at the Moon for a moment, Tails gave everyone a confused look.

"I-, I'm not…" Said Tails.

"You're okay?" Asked Amy.

"...Yeah?" Replied Tails.

"Guys, we still got a haunted cadaver and a Werewolf to deal with here!" Said Sticks, staring at the lifeless skeleton.

"Yeah, what did it do to you?" Asked Sonic.

Rubbing his head Tails replied, "I think… it must've cured me…"

"Why would this Were-Lich do that?" Asked Sticks, glaring suspiciously at the corpse.

Everyone stopped talking as they heard Ned coughing up water. Sticks and Knuckles raised defensive poses while Amy held Sonic and Tails' shoulders. Ned lifted his head and stared at them with his brown eyes. Squinting in confusion, he noticed the lifeless Skeleton before him. Gasping quietly, Ned scrambled over to it.

"What are you doing?!" Demanded Sticks.

Ned ignored her and crawled to the Skeleton. Slowly lowering a shaky hand to its bony claws, he lifted up the large silver needle. His eyes skimmed over it reading small text, before widening in shock.

"No… No…" Muttered Ned, dropping the silver needle, "I can't… not now…"

"What's wrong?" Asked Knuckles.

"I didn't come all the way out here just to have some ancient failure of a Lycan declare unconditional surrender!" Yelled Ned, "I didn't seek it out just to give up!"

Somehow managing to stand on his feet, Ned started furiously kicking at the Skeleton. Sticks and Knuckles backed up with confused expressions while the others wondered if they should intervene. After a few moments of his tantrum, Ned tripped and fell to his knees, mumbling illegibly.

"So it cured us?" Asked Tails.

"It was a Lich for a reason!" Yelled Ned, "It refused to die for a reason! I HAD TO BEAR THIS CURSE FOR A REASON! Now I'm sixty-three years old! No Career! NO RESPECT! NO POWER!"

"You're sixty-three?!" Asked Tails.

Everyone watched as tears started flowing from Ned's eyes and down his dirty and matted muzzle. He didn't confirm Tails' questions, but they appeared to be true.

"There they are!" Yelled Mayor Fink from a distance.

Turning around, everyone saw Mayor Fink, accompanied by two police officers and Vector the Crocodile. They rushed over to Team Sonic and Ned, trailed by Vectors' camera crew. Mayor Fink stopped in his tracks as he saw Tails, looking back and forth between him and the Moon.

"But, you…" Muttered Mayor Fink.

"There's our culprit!" Said Vector, before turning to his cameraman, "I wasn't sure whether to call animal control or the police, but it looks like I made the right call!"

"How'd you all get here so fast?" Asked Sonic.

"We drove." Replied Vector.

"Oh."

"You worthless… ugh…" Muttered Ned.

With Ned too distraught to fight or flee, Mayor Fink insisted this concluded everything. However, Vector had a suspicious look in his eyes.

"Well I must commend you all on your heroism," said Vector, "But as my audience knows, I work to unravel the truth behind any conflict!"

"You didn't really do much to help." Said Sticks.

"Well ask Mayor F here why he hired a detective to stop a Werewolf, even if he already knew who it was." Said Vector.

Realizing that Vector was a detective for a reason, Tails released a worried squeak.

"It's clear that this Wolf, otherwise known across the island as the Full Moon vandal, was up to a spot of grave robbing." Said Vector with a confident pose, "Then he was recruited by Dr. Eggman to kill Sonic! I can see now that all the Werewolf pizzas was special effects and animatronics with the aid of Dr. Eggman, set up as a red herring!"

As Tails and the others sighed in relief, Ned began furiously muttering, "You foolish, moronic… I won't let you…!"

Trying to stand and summon some form of strength, Ned fell to his knees again. Seeing him unable to fight, the two police officers went to Ned's sides and threw a pair of handcuffs on his hands.

"You're under arrest!" Said the Beaver Cop, "Expect a swift trial and sentence from every town you've terrorized!"

With a defeated sigh, Ned said, "I don't care anymore..."

The cops had to lift Ned from the ground and drag him away as he made no effort to support himself. When he passed Tails, they exchanged a strange pitiful glance. Somehow, the cops failed to noticed as Ned dropped the silver needle while pulling his gaze away from Tails. On guard, Tails knelt down and picked it up. He quickly deduced that it was an old yet innovative syringe with a small well of liquid inside.

As Vector began some more monologuing at his camera, everyone else discussed what to do with the Skeleton. Tails asked to have a day or two to analyze it, surprising the others with his jump in enthusiasm. Despite being reminded of Tails' request earlier that week and the ensuing consequences, Mayor Fink obliged as a form of apology. After Vector's camera crew stopped recording to check their footage, he walked over to Tails with a sly smirk.

"By the way, those fangs of yours would be fitting for a Werewolf costume next Halloween," said Vector with a wink, "Just don't vandalize any more fast food joints."

"What?! he didn't-!" Said Amy

"How'd you know?!" Asked Tails.

"Because you just told me, fox boy!" Said Vector, "That, and after that scene at your house earlier, I'd quit my job if I didn't put two and two together."

Everyone's mouths hung ajar and Tails started stuttering incoherently in panic.

"I already have enough intrigue for my show, so no need to publicly humiliate you." Said Vector, "You seem like a responsible kid, so I'll trust you'll sort out everything from here."

Unable to produce of any coherent sentences, Tails nodded vigorously. As Vector walked away, Sonic, Knuckles, Sticks, Amy, and Tails almost collapsed from their exhaustion and wounds. Nothing left to do, they recollected themselves and headed back to Tails' Workshop.

* * *

Marching into his Lair, Dr. Eggman was greeted with the sight of Orbot and Cubot throwing wads of toilet paper in the garbage. As soon as they noticed him, the two bots hovered over curiously.

"You're back in one piece!" Said Orbot, "How'd it go?"

"The two-tailed goober violently electrocuted Ned and almost rammed me out of the sky with his Plane," said Eggman, "But Sonic might be dead! Though I had to leave before finding out for sure."

"Oh, they were just talking about that on the news!" Said Cubot.

On the running television in the wall, Soar the Eagle had just started talking on scene, "In other news, Sonic the hedgehog almost died tonight! But he didn't."

"Ugh," muttered Eggman, "Well, at least I can still exploit that fact that Tails is a walking timebom-"

The news camera panned over to Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, and Sticks as they hobbled on their way home. Eggman gasped as he saw Tails no longer in his radiation suit but still normal. His mind began filling with waves of frustration and curiosity as to how this happened. However, before Eggman could start yelling in anger, Soar continued his monologue on screen.

"We just received a loose report on what happened." Said Soar, "Apparently Dr. Eggman had hired an infamous vandal and used them to lure Sonic into a trap, leading to his near death experience at the bottom of a river. The monster that's terrorized our Village was one of his creations in disguise, of which was destroyed by Team Sonic!"

"What?" Said Orbot, "That's not at all what happened!"

"Who feeds these guys all their fake news?" Asked Cubot.

"Hehehe…" Chuckled Eggman, much to the surprise of his minions, "Those Villagers were horrified by that Werewolf! If they think I can create monsters of such terrifying potential, they'll have no choice but to respect me now!"

Orbot and Cubot stared at each other, then shrugged.

"Hah! Both those Were-mutts are out of my hair and I get free infamy?" Said Eggman, "This is a win win!"

"So everything's finally back to normal, huh boss?" Said Cubot.

As soon as Cubot finished emanating audio, Eggman's fake plastic mustache fell to the floor. The Lair fell silent for a moment as neither Eggman or his minions moved.

"I'm going to bed." Said Eggman.

* * *

In the Workshop, Amy and Tails were busy bandaging all of the wounds Sonic and Knuckles had accumulated. The Skeletal corpse was currently locked in a large metal trunk, of which Sticks was adorning with a variety of locks and chains. Yawning aloud, Tails glanced at her arm cast.

"You want me to check that cast?" Asked Tails.

"Nah," said Sticks, "I'm resilient, shouldn't need this too long anyway."

"I'm just glad my leg isn't broken." Said Sonic, wincing as Amy tightened a bandage over the bite mark on his leg.

"Hey, at least these bites won't have any side effects!" Said Knuckles.

"Well, you could still get infections," said Amy, "So say something if you get a fever."

"Aw, getting sick isn't as cool as becoming a Werewolf!" Said Knuckles.

"But it's certainly more treatable." Replied Tails.

A beep came from the Chemical Analysis Machine nearby and Tails hopped over to check the new test results. He cocked his head as he read the data, then looked out the window with a quizzical look in his eyes.

"Huh," muttered Tails.

"You're cured, right?" Said Amy.

"Uh…no…?" Tails' ears perked up as he read the last line of results, "Oh... Oh? Oh! Why didn't I think of that?!"

"What is it?" Said Sonic.

"The formula in that silver needle wasn't a full cure, it just altered my dna slightly!" Said Tails, beginning to laugh hysterically, "All it did was turn off the trigger conditions! I could've done that!"

"So you're still a Werefox?" Asked Sticks.

"No?" Said Tails with a shrug, "I can't turn into one now, but I've still got all those dna alterations and chemicals."

"So your teeth will stay like that?" Asked Amy.

"Hopefully the lingering mutations will revert to normal over time." Said Tails, checking his data again, "Actually, I'm pretty sure they will."

"So your cured." Said Sonic.

"Kinda no, but essentially yes!" Said Tails.

Sonic smiled as he watched Tails sigh heavily and relax his posture. Despite his best efforts to confuse everyone, it was clear that Tails would be okay. Letting Amy finish a few more bandages, Sonic felt relief fill his nerves. Or maybe that was lingering electric shock. Either way, everything he could think of seemed to be resolved.

"Sonic, we're basically dressed as mummies now!" Said Knuckles, "Wanna get some candy real quick?"

Checking the time, Sonic replied, "Sorry, I think everyone's done trick or treating by now."

"What?!" Said Knuckles, slumping forward in agony.

Hearing a knock at the door, Sticks jumped up and opened it. Carrying a large bag, Zooey walked in and scanned the room.

"Oh, hey Zooey!" Said Sonic, "What's up?"

"I know you guys were out saving the Village all night again," said Zooey, "So I convinced some friends to help me get you all plenty of candy!"

"You're the best friend I've ever had!" Said Knuckles, "I'm Knuckles by the way, I don't think we've actually been properly introduced before."

After chuckling, Zooey glanced at Tails and asked, "Hey, is Tails alright?"

Sonic observed Tails, seeing him standing still with his head hung low. Noticing he was quietly snoring, Sonic chuckled softly and said, "He just fell asleep. It's been a while since I saw him sneak in a nap like that."

"Huh," said Zooey, "Well, I can talk to him later."

"Don't wanna wake him?" Asked Amy.

"He's been stressed, probably needs more sleep anyway." Said Zooey.

Acknowledging that Zooey was probably right, everyone decided to quietly clean up the area and head to their homes to rest. Knuckles picked up Tails and carried him to his house next door, receiving no objection from him as he woke and noticed his. Being set on his bed, Tails tucked himself in and thanked everyone before they left. He appreciated being able to sleep during the night again.

* * *

Early the next morning, Tails had woken up well rested for the first time in days. The sun wasn't even out yet, but after getting a bowl of cereal he headed over to his Workshop. His restless mind rolling around everything he'd learned, Tails started writing a proper scientific essay about his Werewolf research. While this could get his foot in the door of genome sciences as an amazing discovery, Tails was mostly doing it for fun. He doubted he'd ever publicly publish this information anyway.

As he looked through all of his data, Tails found the video file of him he stole from Eggman. He knew this solid proof would be a great to citation, but he was beyond embarrassed by the idea. As he attempted to watch the video and make up his mind, Tails abruptly shut the laptop, face flush with embarrassment. A knock on the door made him jump.

Running over and opening the door expecting Sonic, Tails saw Eggman. He squinted for a moment, waiting for Eggman to explain himself.

"I just came over to… ugh…" Eggman coughed, "...apologize."

"What do you need?" Asked Tails.

"You presumptuous-!" Eggman stopped himself, and said, "Can I have the mind control helmet back?"

"Why would I do that?" Asked Tails, "I have no reason to let you start brainwashing wild animals."

"Look, some of those mind alteration components are expensive!" Said Eggman, "I'm gonna sell them at gouged prices to fund my new benign biological research, hair restoration!"

"You wanna regrow you mustache instantly?" Said Tails, "I think you look good with less facial hair."

"Look, I still have footage of you becoming that mongrel! You want everyone else to know what you were?!" Yelled Eggman.

"No you don't." Said Tails with a smirk.

"What? Of course I do… AUGH! I should've deactivated that Flybot!" Yelled Eggman, then pointing at Tails' face, "YOU'LL REGRE-!"

Before Eggman could finish yelling, Tails bit his hand. Jumping out of the way of a retaliatory punch, Tails said, "Sorry! I felt like getting some use out of these fangs while I still have them!"

"Whatever!" Said Eggman as he rubbed his hand and held back tears, "I'm going home!"

"Don't come back!" Said Tails.

"Oh I'll be back!" Yelled Eggman, "Just as soon as I'm finished reassembling my legion of robots!"

"So noon tomorrow?"

"Don't sell me short, more like eleven-thirty!"

"Whatever Egghead."

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

Thus concludes this story!

I hope this finale seventh chapter wrapped up everything in an engaging manner! I wound up deciding to expand and complicate the main climax fight scene beyond my original plans, and wound up way too many words. Now that its only 200 above 10,000, I'm going to say its close enough to my acceptable 5,000 - 10,000 standards.

I do have multiple prompt ideas for shorter one-shot epilogue chapters, so I may add those in the future. Though I have other plans to attend to first, most notably a Spyro the Dragon fic, of which I'm determined to make shorter than this one. I could also post the one shot epilogues as separate stories if yins would prefer that, so let me know in the comments/reviews.

Now that we're at the end, I have one finale reminder that I was writing his story to improve my writing in grammar structure and story beats combined. As such, I would greatly appreciate if you leave any criticism, good or negative. Tell me what parts you liked or disliked based on your preferences, and also tell me what you think needs improvement.

Thanks so much for reading this to the end, Have a nice year!  
-The Secret Person

PS: If you want to ask me things about this story, potential future stories, or just send me 600 - 1,000 word prompts anonymously or publicly, visit my Tumblr! onsecretperson . Tumblr .com

PPS: I finished this here Halloween story around 30 hours before the New Year. Even though I took more time to do his than planned, I like that I started spending more time an effort on each chapter. In the end, its great that I managed to start writing!


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